Srom  f  0e  fetfirftrg  of 

(pvoftBBOt  tOURm  (differ  (pdtfon,  ©.©.,  ££. 

$reeenfeo  fig  (JJtre.  (Jtarfon 

fo  f0e  fetfimrg  of 

(prtncefon  ^eofogtcdf  ^eminorg 


SABBATH  EVENING  READINGS. 


ST.  MARK 


SABBATH  EVENING  READINGS 


ON    THE 


NEW    TESTAMENT 


REY.  JOHN  GUMMING,  D.D.,  F.R.S.E., 

OP  TIIE  SCOTTISU  NATIONAL  CHURCH,  CROWN  COURT,  COVENT  GARDEN,  LONDON. 


ST.     MAE  K 


BOSTON: 

PUBLISHED  BY  JOHN  P.  JEWETT  AND   COMPANY. 

CLEVELAND,    OHIO: 

JEWETT,   PIIOCTOR,   AND  TVOUTIIiNGTON. 

NEW    YORK  :     SHELDON,    LAMPORT    AND    BLAKEMAN. 

1855. 


cam  bridge: 

ALLEN  AND  FARNHAM,   STEREOTYPERS  AND  PRINTERS. 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  I. 

Page 
Author  of  Gospel  —  Difference  between  Matthew   and   Mark's 
Narratives  —  Christ's  Deity  —  The  Baptist's  Place  — The  Bap- 
tism of  Jesus  —  Call  of  Apostles  — Jesus  in  the  Synagogue  — 
Demoniacs  — Peter's  Wife  —  Jesus  is  God 


CHAPTER  II. 

Popularity  of  the  Preaching  of  Jesus  —  The  Crowd  in  the  Area 

—  The  Palsied  Cured  —  The  only  Sin-Forgiver  —  Pulpits  of 
the  Great  Preacher — Consecrated  Ground  —  Call  of  Matthew 

—  Dining,  when  and  with  whom  —  Fasting  —  Old  Wine  and 
New  Bottles  —  The  Sabbath 14 


CHAPTER  II.    (Continued.) 
The  Sabbath  —  Man's  Mistakes 25 

CHAPTER  III. 

Influence  of  the  Heart  on  the  Head — Sabbath  clay  Duties  — 
Anger  —  Coalition  against  Jesus  —  The  Great  Physician  — 
The  Twelve  —  Earnestness  —  Blasphemy  —  The  Unpardon- 
able Sin  —  The  truly  Blessed 41 


VI  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   IV 


Popularity  of  Teaching  of  Jesus  —  Parable  —  Fable  —  Allegory 
—  Different  Words  for  same  Truths  —  The  Sower  —  Difference 
in  Matthew  and  Mark  —  The  Mustard-tree  —  Jesus  in  a  Storm     51 


CHAPTER   IV.   (Continued.) 

The  Kingdom  of  God  —  The  Sower  —  The  Seed  —  The  Growth 

—  The  Harvest 61 

CHAPTER  V. 

Demoniac  Possession  —  Satan  in  the  Herd  of  Swine  —  The  Con- 
duct of  the  Delivered  Demoniac  —  Showing  forth  the  Truth 

—  The  Woman   touching  the  Hem  of  his  Garment  —  The 
Ruler  and  his  Daughter 78 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Labors  of  Jesus  —  Objections  to  Him  —  Reason  of  Rejection  — 
Importance  of  Faith  —  Missionary  Preparation  and  Apostolic 
Commission  —  Martyrdom  of  John  —  Reason  of  it  —  Female 
Depravity  —  Miracle  of  Loaves  and  Fishes  —  The  Storm  .     .     88 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Ceremony  and  Morality — Concession  and  Compromise  —  The 
Surplice  —  Baptisms  —  Corban — What  it  is  that  defiles  the 
Soul  —  Seal  of  Character  —  The  Woman's  Possessed  Daughter 

—  Ephphatha  —  All  Things  done  well 112 


CHAPTER  VII.   (Continued.) 

Praise  of  Jesus — Excellency  of  Working  —  Creation — Provi- 
dence—  Grace      .     .    ' 123 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Jesus  ministers  to  Bodily  Wants  —  Physical  and  Spiritual  Bless- 
ings connected  — Miracle  of  Loaves  —  Great  Facts  and  Simple 


CONTENTS.  Vll 

Descriptions  —  Pharisees  not  satisfied  —  Leaven  —  Blind  Man 
cured  —  Redemptive  Nature  of  Christ's  Miracles  —  Christ's 
Prediction  of  his  Death  —  A  Cross  first  —  Peter,  Satan,  and 
Eock— Our  Cross  — The   Soul 129 


CHAPTER  VIII.   {Continued.) 

Ashamed  of  Christ  —  Who  are  so  1  —  Reasons  alleged  for  being 
so  —  Not  sound  Reasons  —  Christ  ashamed  of  such    .    .    .  140 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Transfiguration — Moses  and  Elijah — Peter's  Proposal  —  Promise 
of  Elijah's  Coming  —  Demoniac  cured  —  Prayer,  Easting,  and 
Faith —  Interpretation  —  Endless  Misery  —  Affliction    .    .    .153 

CHAPTER  X. 

Crowds  of  Hearers  —  Pharisees  and  Divorce  —  Glory  of  the  Bible 

—  God  suffers  Evil  —  Reasons  why  He  does  so  —  Children 
brought  to  Jesus  —  Heaven  full  of —  Their  Character  —  Bap- 
tism —  The  Young  Inquirer  —  Riches  —  Proverb  —  Promise  165 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Literal  Fulfilment  of  Prophecy  —  The  Children's  Shout  —  The 
Fruitless  Fig-tree  —  Curse  on  the  Tree  a  Lesson  to  the  Jews 

—  Desecration  of  the  House  of  God  —  Jesus  rebukes  it  — 
John  Knox  —  Prayer — Captious  Questions 175 

CHAPTER  XL    (Continued.) 
Prayer  —  Assurance 185 

CHAPTER  XII. 

A  Parable  —  Pharisees  see  its  Drift  —  The  Erastians  and  the  High 
Ecclesiastics  —  A  Snare  — The  Attack  of  the  Sadducees  — 
The  Millennium  and  its  Features  —  The  Common  People 
heard  gladly  — Only  Test  of  Truth  — A  Widow's  Offer  .    .192 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

Watch  —  Jewish  Economy  —  A  Foreshadow  —  Temple  —  Stones 
—  End  of  the  Age  —  Cautions  — Joscplms  —  Signs  in  the  Sky 
significant  of  Results  on  Earth  —  Fig-tree  Budding  — Jews  — 
The  Coming  Struggle  —  Watch 204 


CHAPTER  XIII.  [Continued.) 

Forms  of  Evil  —  Seductive  Systems  —  False  Teachers  —  Miracles 
—  The  Elect 215 


€HAPTER  XIV. 

Enmity  of  the  Priests  —  Woman  and  precious  Perfume  —  Judas 
—  Last  Passover — Prophecy  of  Betrayal  —  Lord's  Supper  — 
Transubstantiation  —  Peter's  Self-confidence  — Gcthsemane  — 
Betrayal  by  Judas  —  Peter's  Denial 223 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Last  Sufferings  of  Jesus  —  Pilate  —  Silence  of  Jesus  —  Barabbas 
preferred  to  the  Son  of  God — Ecclesiastical  Succession  — 
Pilate's  miserable  Conduct — Jesus  Crucified  —  Darkness  — 
Hour  of  Crucifixion  —  The  Cry  on  the  Cross 233 


CHAPTER  XV.    (Continued.) 

Centurion's  Testimony  impartial — What  implied  in  it  —  Evan- 
gelists sketched  from  a  Living  Original 243 

CHAPTER    XVI. 

The  Resurrection  of  Jesus — The  Stone  at  the  Sepulchre  —  Tho 
Scene  within  —  Message  to  Peter — Miracles 261 

CHAPTER  XVI.    {Continued.) 

The  Great  Commission  —  The  Extent  of  the  Gospel  —  Effects  of 
—  Baptisms  —  Christianity  a  Universal  Religion 269 


SCRIPTURE   READINGS. 


EXPOSITION  OF  MARK  I. 

A.UTHOR  OF  GOSPEL  —  DIFFERENCE  BETWEEN  MATTHEW  AND  MARK'S 
NARRATIVES  —  CHRIST'S  DEITY  —  THE  BAPTIST'S  PLACE  —  THE 
BAPTISM  OF  JESUS  —  CALL  OF  APOSTLES  —  JESUS  IN  THE  SYNA- 
GOGUE—  demoniacs  —  peter's  wife  —  jesus  is  god. 

It  is  clearly  gathered  from  other  portions  of  the 
New  Testament  Scriptures  that  the  author  of  this 
Gospel  was  called  sometimes  John  —  not  John  the 
Evangelist  —  and  afterwards  surnamed  Mark,  and 
was  sister's  son  to  Barnabas,  and  the  son  of  Mary,  a 
pious  woman  who  lived  in  the  midst  of  Jerusalem. 
He  is  alluded  to  by  the  Apostle  Paul,  whom  he 
accompanied  in  many  of  his  travels,  as  we  find 
recorded  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  He  was  also 
the  very  intimate  companion  of  the  Apostle  Peter, 
who  frequently  makes  mention  of  him ;  and  it  is 
universally  believed,  as  it  is  recorded  by  most  of  the 
ancient  Patristic  authorities,  that  this  Gospel  was 
not  only  inspired  by  God,  like  the  rest  of  the  four, 
but  that  it  was  also  composed  under  the  surveillance 
and  superintendence  of  the  Apostle  Peter  himself. 
1 


2  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

We  shall  trace  a  distinction  between  this  Gospel 
and  that  according  to  St.  Matthew.  St.  Matthew's 
Gospel  was  plainly  written  for  the  Jews,  and  there- 
fore it  traces  the  genealogy  of  Christ  through  all  the 
Jewish  families  upwards  to  Adam;  and  you  will 
notice  that  in  it  there  are  allusions  to  Jewish  cus- 
toms, rites,  and  ceremonies,  without  the  least  explan- 
atory remark  appended  to  them,  which  plainly  indi- 
cates that  Matthew  wrote  for  a  people  who  under- 
stood the  rites,  ceremonies,  and  customs  to  which  he 
refers.  I  do  not  know  whether  I  mentioned,  in  my 
introductory  remarks  on  St.  Matthew's  Gospel,  that 
the  universal  statement  of  the  early  Fathers  is,  that 
he  wrote  his  Gospel  in  the  Hebrew,  or  rather  in  the 
Syro-Chaldaic  language,  which  was  a  dialect  of  the 
Hebrew  spoken  by  the  Jews  in  the  days  of  our 
blessed  Lord.  It  is  said  by  some  of  the  Fathers, 
that  it  was  translated  subsequently  into  Greek  by 
Matthew  himself;  by  others  it  is  said  that  it  was 
translated  by  some  other  writer.  St.  Mark's  Gospel 
was  written,  plainly,  originally  in  Greek,  being  a 
Gospel  meant  peculiarly  for  the  Gentiles ;  and  in  it 
we  have  less  of  the  personal  history  of  Jesus,  and 
more  of  his  official  character.  Thus,  whilst  Matthew 
begins  with  the  genealogy  of  Christ  the  Son  of 
David,  the  Gospel  of  Mark  begins  with  the  herald  of 
Jesus,  and  his  temptation,  and  miracles.  We  shall 
find,  by  a  careful  comparison  of  the  four  Gospels, 
that  whatever  was  their  common  origin,  —  and  I 
believe  the  writers  of  them  were  independent  wit- 
nesses to  the  facts  which  they  recorded,  and  that 
they  have  recorded  these  facts  each  in  his  own  Ian- 


MARK    I.  3 

guage  and  phraseology,  but  guided,  governed,  and 
directed  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  —  we  have  Christ  in  four 
different  lights,  portrayed,  if  I  may  so  speak,  in  four 
different  aspects,  described  by  four  different  narrators  ; 
one  a  profile,  another  a  full  face,  the  other  three 
quarters  of  the  face,  and  another  almost  entirely 
relating  to  the  official  character  and  functions  of 
Jesus.  So  that  we  have  Christ  set  forth  in  all  lights, 
and  seen  at  all  angles,  and  exhibited  in  all  his  glory 
by  four  competent  witnesses,  describing  in  their  own 
way,  but  inspired  by  the  common  Spirit,  the  wonder- 
ful things  of  the  Son  of  God. 

This  Gospel  begins  at  once  by  the  statement, 
"  The  beginning  of  the  Gospel,"  that  is  plainly,  the 
beginning  of  the  narrative  of  the  good  news,  "of 
Jesus  Christ;"  not,  as  Matthew  says,  "the  Son  of 
David,"  for  it  was  not  St.  Mark's  purpose  to  delineate 
him  in  that  character,  but  "  the  Son  of  God."  Now 
this  expression  means,  in  the  New  Testament,  invari- 
ably a  divine  person.  To  call  one  "the  Son  of  God," 
was  equivalent  in  Jewish  hearing  to  calling  him 
"  God  over  all  blessed  for  evermore."  It  is  therefore 
very  beautiful  that  the  Gospel  which  delineates  his 
sorrows  as  a  man,  should  have  for  its  preface  his 
glory  as  the  Son  of  God.  It  is  very  interesting  that 
that  Gospel  which  tells  us  how  deep  he  sunk  in  the 
miry  clay,  when  the  weight  and  pressure  of  our 
iniquities  was  upon  him,  should  begin  with  a  decla- 
ration of  his  majesty  and  glory,  that  we  might  never 
lose  sight  of  the  God  in  his  deepest  sorrows,  or 
forget  that  he  was  the  Equal  of  the  Father,  when  he 
endured  the  cross  for  us  and  our  salvation. 


4  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

St.  Mark  refers  to  the  ministry  of  John,  as  that 
ministry  was  predicted  in  the  prophet  Malachi,  ch. 
iii.,  and  again  in  Isaiah  xl.,  and  both  fulfilled  in  John 
baptizing  in  the  wilderness,  and  preaching  the  bap- 
tism of  repentance  as  a  preparation  for  Christ,  in 
whom  alone  there  was  remission  of  sins. 

We  read  that  "  there  went  out  unto  him  all  the 
land  of  Judsea."  That  expression  "  all,"  I  may  state, 
is  used  in  Scripture  not  in  that  rigid  sense  in  which 
theologians  would  sometimes  interpret  it.  You  recol- 
lect that,  in  the  book  of  Exodus,  we  read  that  the 
hail  smote  all  the  herbs  in  the  land  of  Egypt ;  but 
we  find  afterwards  some  herbs,  plants,  and  trees  that 
were  spared.  The  word  "  all,"  therefore,  was  used 
in  the  sense  of  all  sorts  of  plants,  trees,  and  herbs. 
So,  again,  we  have  in  one  of  the  Epistles  the  apostle 
exhorting  that  prayers  should  be  made  for  all  men, 
for  all  in  authority,  for  kings,  since  God  will  have 
"  all  men  "  to  be  saved.  If  it  were  God's  absolute 
fiat  that  the  whole  of  the  world  should  be  saved, 
Universalism  would  be  true ;  but,  plainly,  the  word 
"  all "  is  used  in  the  sense  of  all  sorts  of  men :  for  he 
exhorts  that  prayers  be  made  for  all  in  authority,  that 
is,  for  kings  as  well  as  subjects.  And  here  it  cannot 
be  supposed  that  the  whole  population  of  Juda?a, 
numbering  somewhere  about  three,  four,  or  five  mil- 
lions, went  out  to  John,  but  that  all  sorts  of  the 
inhabitants  —  Pharisees,  Sadducees,  scribes,  rich, 
poor,  great,  and  lowly  —  went  out  to  hear  John  the 
Baptist.  We  read  next  a  description  of  John's  rai- 
ment. To  show  that  he  was  the  preacher  of  a  stern 
testimony,  he  was  clothed  in  the  severest  and  the 


MARK    I.  O 

simplest  habits, — clothed  with  camel's  hair;  and  it 
is  said  that  he  ate,  —  not  to  indicate  his  taste,  but 
the  place  of  his  habitation,  —  locusts  and  wild  honey. 
He  did  not  eat  locusts  and  wild  honey  as  a  monk 
eats  black  bread,  as  an  expiatory  duty,  but  because 
he  could  find  nothing  else  in  the  place  in  which  he 
was  constrained  to  live. 

He  preached,  not  himself,  but,  like  a  faithful  min- 
ister, his  Master.  He  detached  the  people's  thoughts 
from  the  herald,  and  tried  to  teach  them  of  One  who 
came  after  him,  —  "  There  cometh  one  mightier  than 
I  after  me,  the  latchet  of  whose  shoes  I  am  not 
worthy  to  stoop  down  and  unloose."  When  a 
traveller  came  to  an  eastern  house,  his  shoes  or  san- 
dals were  unloosed  and  removed  by  the  servant,  that 
the  dusty  feet  might  be  washed,  and  the  weary 
traveller  thus  refreshed.  "Well,  John  says,  The  gap 
between  me,  the  pioneer,  and  my  great  Master  is  so 
great,  that  I  am  not  worthy  to  do  the  humblest  office 
for  him  —  so  great  is  his  glory,  and  so  lowly  is  my 
function. 

Then  we  read  that  "  Jesus  was  baptized  of  John 
in  Jordan."  Now  some  say  that  he  was  immersed, 
others  that  he  was  sprinkled,  and  others  that  water 
was  poured  upon  his  head.  If  we  take  ancient 
pictures,  which  are  in  this  matter  apocryphal,  we 
shall  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  water  was 
poured  upon  his  head.  It  does  not  seem  probable 
that  he  was  immersed;  and  at  all  events  there  is  a 
magnificent  latitude  in  the  language  of  Scripture, 
which  never  so  describes  a  ceremony,  that  rigid  con- 
formity in  jots  and  tittles  shall  be  our  duty.  On  the 
1* 


6  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

contrary,  it  leaves  the  ceremony  so  largely  and 
widely  delineated,  that  this  custom  may  prevail  in 
the  north,  and  that  custom  in  the  south,  provided  the 
substance  be  observed.  The  special  ritual  pecu- 
liarities are  left  to  the  habits  and  customs,  the  taste 
and  convenience  of  the  people.  Certainly,  if  immer- 
sion were  universal  (and  I  am  not  finding  fault  with 
it ;  I  am  only  finding  fault  with  those  who  abso- 
lutely insist  upon  it),  it  would  be  a  very  awkward 
custom  in  Greenland;  it  would  be  very  unsuitable 
in  the  severe  frosts  of  winter ;  and  surely  that  religion 
which  is  not  meat  nor  drink,  but  righteousness,  and 
peace,  and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  never  would  have 
enforced  a  rigid  ceremony  impracticable  in  Green- 
land, and  practicable  only  where  there  is  a  warm  sun 
and  a  balmy  climate,  in  English  Junes,  or  in  eastern 
or  equatorial  lands.  It  therefore  seems  not  worth 
disputing  whether  it  was  immersion  or  sprinkling : 
there  is  something  better  than  either  —  righteousness, 
peace,  and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost.  I  do  not  wish  to 
make  severe  and  controversial  criticisms  upon  any 
section  of  the  Christian  Church,  still  less  when  in 
that  section  there  was  an  Andrew  Fuller,  a  Robert 
Hall,  and  many  others  eminent  for  their  learning  and 
their  talents ;  but  I  must  add,  it  is  not  sufficient  to 
quote  this  passage  to  prove  that  adult  baptism  is 
alone  lawful.  Our  Lord's  baptism  was  not  our 
baptism  at  all.  Christian  baptism  was  not  yet  insti- 
tuted ;  it  was  not  instituted  till  after  our  Lord's  resur- 
rection from  the  dead,  and  therefore  cannot  have 
been  practised  before  it  was  ill  existence.  The  only 
baptism  that  existed  was  John's ;  and  so  unsatisfac- 


MARK    I.  7 

tory  was  this  baptism,  that  we  read  in  the  Acts  of 
the  Apostles  that  they  who  had  received  John's 
baptism  had  to  receive  Christian  baptism,  showing 
that  the  two  were  not  identical  at  all.  Therefore, 
it  is  evident  that  the  baptism  of  Jesus  was  not  what 
we  call  Christian  baptism,  in  the  name  of  the  Father, 
and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Then, 
what  was  it?  It  was  the  commencement  of  his 
official  ministry ;  it  was  his  initiation  as  the  Great 
Teacher  of  the  glad  tidings  of  everlasting  life ;  and 
when  He  was  thus  baptized,  we  read  that  the  Holy 
Spirit  descended  upon  him,  not  to  sanctify  him  —  for 
the  Holy  Spirit  was  in  him  in  all  fulness  from  his 
birth  —  but  to  qualify  him  for  his  office,  proving  that 
this  baptism  was  introductory  to  an  official  function. 
The  Spirit  descended  like  a  dove  —  some  say  in  the 
shape  of  a  dove;  certainly  in  one  passage  it  looks 
very  like  that,  for  there  it  is  said,  oofiariKug,  in  the 
bodily  form  of  a  dove.  Yet  one  does  not  like  to 
admit,  without  some  very  clear  evidence,  that  He 
took  any  visible  form,  or  revealed  himself  in  the  form 
of  any  animal  or  bird  whatever.  It  seems  not 
directly  contradicted  that  the  Spirit  descended  with 
the  speed  of  a  dove,  and  lighted  on  his  head ;  "  and 
there  came  a  voice  from  heaven,"  the  voice  of  the 
Father,  "  saying,  Thou  art  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom 
I  am  well  pleased."  Now,  here  we  have  the  whole 
Trinity.  We  have  Christ  the  Subject,  the  Spirit  the 
Anointer,  and  the  Father  uttering  from  heaven, 
"  Thou  art  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased." 

We   find   next  the  record  of  the  temptation  of 


8  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

Jesus.  The  word  "  driven  "  is  too  severe  a  transla- 
tion of  the  original.  It  ought  to  be,  "was  carried 
away  "  —  was  led  away,  not  by  his  own  choice,  nor 
yet  by  external  force,  but  in  the  providence  and  by 
the  direction  of  God.  He  was  led  into  the  wilder- 
ness, there  to  be  tempted.  Is  there  not  here  a  singu- 
lar contrast?  The  world  was  lost  in  a  beautiful 
garden,  amid  a  balmy  air,  amid  all  created  things  — 
birds  and  beasts  in  accord  with  man,  who  was  in 
sweet  accord  with  God  ;  and  the  world  was  regained, 
and  Paradise  restored,  in  a  desert,  the  opposite  to  a 
garden,  amid  savage  wild  beasts  that  were  at  war 
with  man,  because  man  was  at  war  with  God,  and 
by  the  solitary  Second  Adam  strong  in  the  strength 
of  Him  on  whose  mission  and  embassy  he  came. 
We  read  that  angels  there  ministered  to  him ;  and  at 
last  Jesus  came  forth,  when  John  was  put  into  prison. 
As  soon  as  the  morning-star  had  set,  and  this  grand 
Sun  had  risen,  we  hear  that  he  preached  in  Galilee 
the  very  first  thing,  not  the  law,  not  repentance,  but 
"the  Gospel  of  the  kingdom."  First,  the  kingdom 
of  God  is  at  hand,  that  is,  the  good  tidings,  salva- 
tion: therefore,  because  of  this,  repent,  John's 
preaching  was,  "  Repent,  in  order  to  reach  the 
Gospel,"  a  preparatory  process.  The  preaching  of 
Jesus  was,  "  Here  is  the  Gospel,  the  glad  tidings : 
therefore,  and  subsequent  to  this,  repent,  and  be 
saved." 

We  have  then  his  choice  of  some  of  his  followers 
to  be  ministers.  "  He  saw  Simon  and  Andrew  his 
brother  casting  a  net  into  the  sea,  for  they  were 
fishers.     And  Jesus  said  unto  them,  Come  ye  after 


MARK 


9 


me,  and  I  will  make  you  to  become  fishers  of  men." 
Under  a  divine  impulse  they  resigned  their  nets,  left 
off  their  profits,  and  followed  Jesus.  We  then  find 
him  calling  James  and  John,  the  sons  of  Zebedee, 
who  appears  to  have  been  a  person  of  more  affluent 
circumstances,  from  the  hint  in  the  20th  verse,  that 
the  ship  was  left  with  the  hired  servants,  that 
James  and  John  might  undertake  the  ministry  of  the 
Gospel. 

Jesus  went  into  the  synagogue  and  taught,  regard- 
ing every  place  as  sacred  that  would  open  a  door  to 
receive  him.  The  scribes  and  Pharisees,  with  all 
their  forms,  were  much  more  liberal  than  many 
Christians  are  in  the  present  day.  When  they  saw 
in  the  synagogue  a  gifted  man,  who  was  known  to 
be  able  to  address  the  assembly,  it  was  common  to 
ask  him  to  address  the  people,  and  tell  them  some- 
thing that  would  comfort  them,  and  do  them  good. 
And  I  may  state  for  the  special  information  of  our 
Tractarian  friends,  that  in  the  first  three  centuries  of 
the  Christian  Church,  nothing  was  more  common 
than  for  the  presiding  minister,  or  bishop  if  you  like, 
when  he  happened  to  espy  in  his  congregation  a 
pious  and  gifted  layman,  to  invite  him  into  the  pul- 
pit to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  people.  Now,  how 
far  the  Tractarians  may  approve  of  this  practice 
their  own  writings  will  determine.  At  all  events,  if 
they  will  be  ante-Nicene,  and  primitive  in  all  things, 
it  is  a  pity  that  they  should  take  so  many  husks,  and 
leave  so  many  of  the  useful  kernels  that  they  might 
find,  if  they  would  be  at  the  trouble  to  search  for 
them. 


10  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

Jesus  was  addressed  by  a  man  who  was  possessed 
by  an  unclean  spirit.  I  stated  before  that  demoniac 
possessions  were  realities  in  the  days  of  our  Lord. 
I  do  not  believe  there  are  any  instances  of  such  now. 
Satan  adapts  himself  to  the  phase  in  which  God's 
kingdom  appears.  When  God  became  incarnate, 
Satan  became  incarnate  also.  When  Moses  did 
miracles  in  Egypt,  the  devil,  by  the  magicians,  did 
his  pranks  or  miracles  also.  So  when  God  was 
incarnate,  Satan  appeared  also  in  his  way  incarnate. 
And  now  that  we  have  the  dispensation  of  the  Spirit, 
we  have  Satan  seducing,  tempting,  beguiling,  deceiv- 
ing, but  not  in  the  shape  of  demoniac  literal  posses- 
sions. That  this  was  a  literal  and  personal  demon 
in  the  man  is  perfectly  obvious  from  the  language. 
The  devil  said  to  Jesus,  "  Art  thou  come  to  destroy 
us  ?  What  have  we  to  do  with  thee,  thou  Jesus  of 
Nazareth?  I  know  thee  who  thou  art,  the  Holy 
One  of  God."  That  creed  is  too  clear  for  a  poor 
Jew  to  have  given  utterance  to.  It  was  the  utter- 
ance of  one  who  was  orthodox,  for  Satan  knows 
vastly  more  than  we  know ;  but  also  of  one  who  was 
hateful  and  malignant,  and  therefore  dreading  the 
approach  of  the  Holy  One  of  God.  Then  Jesus 
rebuked,  not  the  man,  but  the  unclean  spirit,  saying, 
"  Hold  thy  peace,  and  come  out  of  him.  And  when 
the  unclean  spirit  had  torn  him,  and  cried  with 
a  loud  voice,  he  came  out  of  him."  The  devil  will 
not  let  go  a  victim  without  a  struggle.  Satan  will 
not  be  driven  out  of  this  world  without  great  opposi- 
tion. The  great  Western  apostasy,  which  is  the 
nearest  approximation  to  Satan  manifest  in  the  flesh, 


MARK     I.  11 

will  not  resign  its  foothold  without  a  desperate 
struggle  that  will  rend  the  world,  out  of  which  it 
must  be  ultimately  driven.  But  what  an  evidence 
of  awful  malignity  it  is,  that  when  the  devil  could 
no  longer  hold  the  ground  he  had  occupied,  he 
would  damage  that  ground  before  he  would  resign  it! 
"  And  they  were  all  amazed,"  and  his  fame,  as  you 
might  expect,  spread  everywhere. 

And  in  the  30th  verse,  we  find  what  must  be  very 
startling  tidings  to  Pio  Nono  and  the  members  of 
his  communion ;  for  there  we  read  that  "  Simon's 
wife's  mother  lay  sick  of  a  fever."  If  Peter  were  to 
present  himself  to  the  Pope  in  1853,  he  would  be 
excluded  by  force  from  the  Vatican,  and  be  regarded 
as  an  apostate  and  schismatic,  unworthy  of  holding 
the  keys,  or  wearing  the  tiara  of  Rome :  for  plainly 
Peter  was  married ;  and  his  wife  so  far  from  being 
disapproved  by  our  Lord,  was,  on  the  contrary, 
highly  approved,  for  He  cured  her  mother  of  a  fever. 
So  little  did  Jesus  disapprove  of  Peter's  mother-in- 
law  suffering  her  daughter  to  marry  Peter,  that  she 
ministered  to  Jesus,  and  Jesus  accepted  it.  It  is  thus 
matter-of-fact  that  Peter,  the  first  alleged  Pope,  was 
married,  and  it  is  also  plain  that  Jesus  did  not  disap- 
prove it.  There  is  no  evidence  that  Peter  sent  her 
into  a  convent,  an  institution  which,  by  the  way,  did 
not  exist,  or  that  she  was  separated  from  him  by 
divorce ;  for  she  had  done  nothing  wrong,  except  in 
the  traditions  of  the  popes,  and  the  blind  opinions  of 
misguided  men. 

We  then  read  (and  what  a  beautiful  thought  it 
is ! )  that  Jesus  went  early  in  the  morning  to  a  soli- 


12  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

tary  place,  and  there  prayed  for  strength  and  refresh- 
ment for  all  the  labors  and  the  trials  that  were 
before  him ;  and  after  he  had  so  prayed,  and  gained 
strength  from  communion  with  his  Father,  he 
preached. 

The  next  incident  of  which  we  read,  is  the  cure  of 
a  leper.  Now  leprosy  was  the  great  type  of  sin ;  and 
such  was  its  nature,  that  it  was  incurable  by  human 
power.  The  office  of  the  priest  in  the  ancient 
economy  was,  not  to  cure  the  leper,  but  to  pronounce 
upon  the  leper  whether  he  was  cured  or  not.  No 
one  was  allowed  to  touch  a  leper;  no  one  would 
have  attempted  to  do  so ;  and  he  who  pretended  to 
cure  leprosy  would  have  been  accused  of  blasphemy 
by  the  Jews,  because  they  held  that  leprosy  could  be 
cured  by  God  himself  only.  Well,  Jesus  touched 
the  leper,  which  was  sin  according  to  Jewish  super- 
stition, if  Christ  was  not  God ;  and  he  said,  "  I  will ; 
be  thou  clean  "  —  that  was  blasphemy,  if  Jesus  was 
not  God :  and  he  ordered  the  leper  to  go  and  show 
himself  to  the  priest,  not  to  please  the  priest,  but  that 
he  might  receive  the  certificate  that  he  was  cured, 
and  mingle  again  with  the  people.  Now,  the  cure 
of  that  leper  was  clearly  the  act  of  One  who  was 
God.  There  is  no  medium  between  the  awful  con- 
clusion that  Jesus  was  a  blasphemer,  and  the  glorious 
and  blessed  conviction  that  He  was  very  God  mani- 
fest in  the  flesh. 


Note.  —  [8.]  Matt.  iii.  1-12  ;  Luke  iii.  1-18.     The  object  of  Mark 
being  to  relate  the  official  life  and  ministry  of  the  Lord,  he  begins 


MARK     I.  13 

with  His  baptism,  and,  as  a  necessary  introduction  to  it,  with  the 
preaching  of  John  the  Baptist.  His  account  of  John's  baptism  has 
much  in  common  with  both  Matthew  and  Luke ;  but,  from  the  addi- 
tional prophecy  quoted  in  verse  2,  is  certainly  independent  and  dis- 
tinct. 

Kvfac  TJvgol  ....  the  expression  is  common  to  Mark,  Luke,  and 
John.  It  amounts  to  the  same  as  bearing  the  shoes  —  for  he  who  did 
the  last,  would  necessarily  be  also  employed  in  loosing  and  taking  off 
the  sandal.  But  the  variety  is  itself  indicative  of  the  independence  of 
Matthew  and  Mark  of  one  another. 

The  additional  intensity  of  temptation  at  the  end  of  that  period  is 
expressed  in  Matthew  by  the  tempter  coming  to  Him,  —  becoming 
visible  and  audible.  Perhaps  the  being  with  the  beasts  may  point  to 
one  form  of  temptation,  viz.  that  of  terror,  which  was  practised  on 
Him ;  but  of  the  inward  trials  who  may  speak  1 


CHAPTER  II. 

POPULARITY  OF  THE  PREACHING  OF  JESUS  —  THE  CROWD  IN  THE 
AREA  —  THE  PALSIED  CURED — THE  ONLY  SIN-FORGIVER  —  PUL- 
PITS OF  THE  GREAT  PREACHER — CONSECRATED  GROUND  —  CALL 
OF  MATTHEW — DINING,  WHEN  AND  WITH  WHOM  —  FASTING  — 
OLD  WINE  AND  NEW  BOTTES  —  THE  SABBATH. 

Whatever  was  the  nature  of  the  close  of  the 
ministry  of  our  Lord,  it  is  certain,  from  this  chapter 
and  other  passages  that  are  parallel  with  it,  that  the 
early  days  of  his  ministry  were  most  bright,  and  that 
the  popular  mind  responded  to  it  most  enthusiasti- 
cally wherever  he  went.  It  is  a  singular  fact,  that 
whilst  the  priests  represented  by  the  Pharisees 
cavilled,  whilst  the  lawyers  tried  to  entrap  him, 
the  common  people,  the  mass  of  the  community, 
heard  him  gladly,  and  were  profited  by  his  lessons. 

It  seems  that  on  this  occasion,  as  he  left  the  desert 
and  entered  into  Capernaum,  the  rumor  went  abroad 
that  he  was  in  the  house.  An  eastern  residence  was 
sometimes  three  houses  joined  together,  and  a  court 
in  the  middle ;  and  the  probability  from  the  descrip- 
tion of  what  followed  is,  that  Jesus  was  in  the  court, 
or  open  area,  in  the  centre  of  the  three  buildings, 
there  speaking  to  the  crowd  that  had  assembled 
together,  if  peradventure  they  could  hear  him.  And 
when  the  crowd  came  in  such  great  numbers,  that 
there  was  no  more  room  to  receive  them,  he  did  not 


MARK     II.  15 

repel  them,  afraid  of  the  heat,  the  pressure,  or  the 
tumult,  but  "  he  preached  the  word  unto  them." 
What  word  ?  The  word  that  was  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment Scripture,  written,  and  by  him  and  through 
him  illustrated,  unfolded,  and  applied  in  all  those 
beautiful  and  instructive  lessons  which  are  scattered 
throughout  the  Scriptures,  like  pearls  on  the  floor 
of  the  deep,  like  precious  stones  in  the  bosom  of  the 
earth. 

When  they  saw  him  thus  engaged,  they  brought 
to  him  one  palsied ;  and  when  they  could  not  come 
nigh  to  him  for  the  press,  they  uncovered  the  roof; 
that  is,  probably,  the  curtain  or  awning  that  was 
stretched  over  the  court  or  area  to  intercept  the  heat 
of  the  sun.  They  untied  the  fastenings  of  this,  and 
they  let  down  the  bed,  a  sort  of  chair  or  couch,  on 
which  the  sick  man  lay,  into  the  midst  of  the  place. 
And  when  Jesus  saw  their  faith,  instead  of  saying 
they  were  uncourteous  or  rude,  or  had  violated  the 
usages  of  civilized  society,  which  certainly  they  had, 
he  was  rejoiced  to  find  in  the  friends  of  the  sick  of 
the  palsy,  that  faith  which  purifieth  the  heart,  and 
overcometh  all  the  difficulties  of  the  world;  and 
without  rebuke,  or  a  remonstrance,  or  the  expression 
of  a  single  word  of  disapproval,  he  said,  in  accents 
the  most  glorious  that  ever  were  pronounced  on 
earth,  "  Son,  thy  sins  be  forgiven  thee."  Now,  this 
absolution  was  not  a  declaration  of  what  was,  or  a 
wish  for  what  might  be,  but  a  judicial  sentence 
of  what  took  effect  the  moment  the  words  were 
uttered. 

Then  certain  of  the  scribes,  who  were  sitting  there 


16  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

always  watching,  not  for  a  word  that  would  do  them 
good,  but  for  a  ground  on  which  they  might  cavil  or 
object  to  Jesus,  reasoned  in  themselves,  and  on  this 
occasion  most  justly,  because  on  the  supposition  that 
Jesus  was  a  mere  man  the  language  that  he  used 
was  absolute  blasphemy,  and  they  said,  "  Who  can 
forgive  sins  but  God  only  ?  "  It  is  plain  that  bad  as 
the  Pharisees  were,  they  were  no  Romanists ;  they 
did  not  believe  that  a  priest  could  forgive  sins ; 
they  did  not  believe  that  it  was  the  function  or 
the  office  of  the  most  exalted  in  their  land  to 
pronounce  a  judicial  sentence  upon  the  state  of  any 
man.   ' 

When  Jesus  knew  their  reasoning,  what  did  he 
say  to  them  ?  He  did  not  say,  "  I  am  only  a  man, 
and  I  have  merely  wished  for  absolution,  or  predicted 
absolution ; "  but  he  showed  evidently  that  he  had 
power  to  forgive  sins ;  not  that  their  reasoning  was 
false,  but  that  it  was  true,  and  that  he  forgave  sin 
because  he  was  more  than  man,  the  Son  of  God,  the 
brightness  of  His  glory,  the  image  of  His  person. 
And  therefore  he  said  to  them,  "  Now,  I  will  put  the 
matter  to  a  test  —  whether  is  it  easier  to  heal  the 
disorders  of  the  soul,  or  to  heal  the  infirmities  of  the 
body  ?  "  He  did  not  imply  that  the  one  was  easier 
than  the  other ;  but  he  taught  them  that  One  who 
could  do  the  one,  they  might  fairly  presume  was 
God,  and  could,  therefore,  do  the  other  also ;  and 
therefore  he  asked  them  which  they  would  wish  to 
be  done.  He  knew  that  the  forgiveness  of  sin  had 
no  visible  effect.  No  man  by  gazing  on  a  man's  face 
could  tell  whether  the  judicial  sentence  of  absolution 


MARK    II.  17 

had  taken  effect  or  not;  but  any  one  seeing  the  heal- 
ing of  the  sick  could  see  whether  the  command  of 
our  Lord  had  taken  effect.  And  therefore  he  says, 
"  By  an  expression  of  power  that  your  outward 
senses  can  judge  of,  I  will  show  that  1  can  heal  the 
body  with  a  word,  and  leave  you  by  a  reasonable 
inference  to  conclude  that  I  can  restore  the  soul  to  its 
pristine  relationship  to  God."  And  therefore,  to 
show  that  the  inner  work  had  taken  place,  he  showed 
them  the  outer  man  restored  to  strength  and  vigor ; 
and  they  were  constrained  to  say,  "  We  never  saw  it 
on  this  fashion." 

After  this,  "  he  went  forth  again  by  the  seaside ; 
and  all  the  multitude  resorted  unto  him,  and  he 
taught  them."  He  did  not  say,  "  I  will  teach  only 
in  the  temple,  for  it  is  holy  ground,"  which  it  was 
peculiarly ;  but  he  evidently  held  the  publican's  table, 
the  home  of  Capernaum,  the  sea-shore  of  Galilee,  fit 
pulpits  from  which  to  proclaim  the  words  of  everlast- 
ing life,  and  to  convey  instruction  to  the  minds  and 
hearts  of .  the  people.  It  is  holy  work  that  makes 
holy  ground.  A  builder  may  raise  an  edifice,  but 
religion  alone  can  make  it  a  sanctuary.  An  orator 
may  collect  an  audience,  but  living  religion  alone  can 
make  it  a  church.  It  is  the  work  that  consecrates 
the  place ;  it  is  not  the  place  that  consecrates  the 
work.  It  is  right  that  there  should  be  places  set 
apart  and  sequestered  from  the  din  of  this  world, 
and  from  the  traffic  of  the  exchange,  and  devoted  to 
holy  lessons  and  holy  services ;  but  we  must  never 
think  for  one  moment  that  there  is  any  spot  of 
ground   so    holy,   that   there   we   must   think   right 


18  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

thoughts,  and  speak  right  words,  and  do  good  deeds, 
but  that  the  moment  we  are  outside,  the  rest  of  the 
ground  is  so  profane  that  we  may  live  just  as  we 
like.  The  whole  earth  was  consecrated  for  the  fruits 
of  Christianity  when  Jesus  the  Son  of  God  allied 
himself  to  our  humanity,  was  born  of  a  virgin,  took 
into  union  with  himself  a  part  of  the  dust  of  the 
world,  and  consecrated  all  space  for  his  temple,  all 
time  for  his  worship. 

As  Jesus  passed  by  he  saw  Levi,  that  is,  the 
writer  of  the  first  Gospel,  or  Matthew,  sitting  at  the 
receipt  of  custom  —  the  custom-house,  or  place 
appointed  for  receiving  the  tribute  that  belonged 
to  Caesar ;  and  he  said  unto  him,  "  Follow  me."  One 
must  suppose  that  he  and  Matthew  had  met  before, 
and  that  Matthew  had  heard  Jesus  teaching  on 
previous  occasions ;  because  one  can  scarcely  think 
that  the  publican  would  have  resigned  his  lucrative 
office,  and  followed  the  homeless  Nazarene,  unless 
his  mind  had  been  enlightened  by  the  lessons  of 
Jesus.  The  moment  he  heard  the  words,  u  Follow 
me,"  he  followed  him.  This  was  not  a  sudden  con- 
version, but  the  result  of  a  long  previous  process.  I 
have  not  much  faith  in  what  are  called  sudden  con- 
versions. I  believe  that  what  we  call  so  are  only  the 
results  of  a  long  previous  process,  just  as  the  harvest- 
home  is  the  result  of  the  sowing  of  the  seed  in 
spring.  Impressions  have  been  made,  and  forces 
have  accumulated  in  the  sanctuary  of  the  soul,  that  on 
the  appropriate  occasion,  fixed  in  the  purposes  of  God, 
produce  that  apparently,  but  not  really  instantane- 
ous effect,  that  ends  in  conversion  to  God  and  obedi- 


MARK     II.  19 

euce  to  Christ.  But  you  will  notice  that  when  Jesus 
said  to  Matthew,  "  Follow  me,"  Matthew  did  not 
say,  "  Lord,  I  am  not  sure  that  I  am  elect."  If  he 
had  said  so,  our  Lord  would  have  probably  replied, 
«  What  is  that  to  thee  ?  Follow  thou  me."  It  is 
remarkable,  if  you  will  notice  the  simplicity  of  the 
cases  all  throughout  the  New  Testament,  that  in 
every  instance  those  metaphysical  questions  that 
Christians  perplex  their  minds  about,  were  never 
thought  of.  Instant  obedience  to  what  Christ  says 
is  duty ;  and  wherever  he  says  "  Do,"  there  he  gives 
strength  and  grace  adequate  to  performance.  If  a 
parent  were  to  hold  oui?  to  his  child  an  orange,  the 
child  would  never  say,  "  I  wonder  if  I  may  calculate 
upon  really  getting  it,  or  whether  it  is  meant  for 
me ; "  but  it  instantly  holds  out  its  hand,  and  takes 
the  orange.  So  we  are  children,  and  God  is  our 
Father;  and  except  we  become  as  little  children,  we 
are  told,  we  cannot  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
God  says,  "  Believe  —  live  —  do."  Do  not  discuss 
the  metaphysics  of  the  question,  but  just  believe  as 
God  says,  and  do  as  God  prescribes,  and  in  the 
effort  you  will  find  the  strength  that  is  adequate  to 
the  occasion. 

We  read  next  that  Jesus  went,  and  sat  down,  and 
dined  with  publicans  and  sinners.  But  is  this  a 
precedent  for  us  to  go  and  dine  with  those  to  whom 
we  entertain  the  strongest  religious  objection?  I 
answer,  when  Jesus  dined  with  these,  he  went  not 
as  a  companion  to  share  in  their  mere  conviviality, 
but  as  an  instructor  of  the  ignorant,  a  physician  for 
the  sick,  a  Saviour  to  the  sinful ;  and  if  we  go  with 


20  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

the  same  motive,  and  with  the  same  design,  we  are 
warranted  in  going  also  :  that  is  to  say,  if  we  go 
deliberately  to  do  good,  designedly  to  benefit  those 
who  are  about  us,  and  with  whom  we  are  associated, 
then  we  are  warranted  in  doing  so ;  but  if  we  go 
where  we  have  no  call  in  providence  to  be,  but  only 
to  gratify  our  own  passions,  or  our  own  mere  carnal 
appetites  and  desires,  it  is  a  question  that  will  be 
very  soon  settled  when  looked  at  in  the  light  of  the 
sanctuary,  whether  we  have  any  right  to  be  there. 
The  scribes  and  the  Pharisees,  startled  by  what  seemed 
to  be  an  inexplicable  contradiction  to  the  rest  of  his 
teaching,  said,  "  How  is  if  that  he  eateth  with  publi- 
cans and  sinners  ?  "  Not  that  they  themselves  were 
better ;  they  added  to  the  sins  of  the  publicans  and 
sinners  the  sin  of  hypocrisy,  and,  compared  with 
publicans  and  sinners,  were  the  guiltier  of  the  two. 
But  when  Jesus  saw  it,  he  gave  them  an  explana- 
tion of  his  conduct,  which  is  to  us  a  precedent  to 
explain  ours  when  any  one  finds  fault  with  it:  — 
"  They  that  are  whole  have  no  need  of  the  physician, 
but  they  that  are  sick.  "Well,  by  your  own  showing, 
you  scribes  and  Pharisees  admit  that  these  men  are 
publicans  and  sinners.  The  worse  they  are,  the  more 
need  they  have  of  curative  treatment.  The  more 
sick  they  are,  the  more  need  they  have  of  a  physi- 
cian. I  am  not  come  to  call  the  righteous,  as  you 
vainly  suppose  yourselves  to  be,  but  those  who  feel 
themselves  to  be  sinners,  unto  repentance."  How 
beautiful  is  this  reply  !  How  rich  in  the  most 
'exalted  common  sense!  How  consolatory  to  us, 
that  because  we  are  sinners,  therefore  Christ  invites 


MARK    II.  21 

us  to  be  saved !  If  you  are  satisfied  that  you  are 
righteous  enough  already,  you  have  no  lot  or  part  in 
this ;  but  if  you  feel  that  you  are  sinners,  here  is  the 
Saviour. 

Well,  when  this  objection  was  disposed  of,  their 
prolific  minds  (the  imagination  fruitful,  because  the 
heart  was  depraved)  suggested  another  objection  — 
"  Why  do  the  disciples  of  John  and  the  Pharisees 
fast,  but  thy  disciples  fast  not  ?  And  Jesus  said  unto 
them,  Can  the  children  of  the  bridechamber  fast, 
while  the  bridegroom  is  with  them?  As  long  as 
they  have  the  bridegroom  with  them,  they  cannot 
fast.  But  the  days  will  come,  when  the  bridegroom 
shall  be  taken  away  from  them,  and  then  shall  they 
fast  in  those  days."  That  is,  fasting  is  not  forbid- 
den :  it  is  proper  enough.  At  one  time  it  would  be 
sin  to  fast ;  at  another  time  it  would  be  obedience  to 
what  seems  the  mind  and  purpose  of  God.  In 
other  words,  fasting  is  not  simply  abstaining  from 
food ;  and  during  the  season  of  Lent,  as  it  is  often 
practised :  to  abstain  from  food  is  but  a  part  of  the 
fasting  that  is.  prescribed  in  the  Word  of  God. 
Those  who  would  be  ceremonially  scriptural  ought 
to  clothe  themselves  in  sackcloth,  and  put  ashes  on 
their  heads,  and  abstain  from  food  —  the  three 
always  go  together  in  Scripture.  It  will  not  do 
to  choose  the  most  convenient  of  the  three.  If  you 
will  be  literal  interpreters,  you  must  take  all,  or  you 
must  observe  the  spirit  of  the  prescription,  and  not 
the  mere  dead  and  uninstructive  letter.  Besides,  it 
is  always  noticed  that  the  greatest  advocates  of  fast- 
ing do  it  because  they  think  it  is  merit,  or  that  it  is 


22  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

an  expiation,  and  blots  out  so  much  sin.  But  it  has 
no  merit ;  and  if  it  had,  we  do  not  need  it.  If  we 
are  Christians,  we  are  clothed  in  the  spotless  right- 
eousness of  the  Son  of  God,  complete  in  him.  And, 
secondly,  if  proposed  as  an  expiation,  we  answer, 
"  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  his  Son  cleanseth  us 
from  all  sin."  But  a  more  enlightened  person  says, 
"  I  fast,  because  I  think  it  is  a  means  of  helping  my 
communion  with  God,  of  assisting  my  study  of  his 
holy  Word,  and  of  enabling  me  to  master  the  sins 
that  beset  me."  I  answer,  if  your  fasting  contributes 
to  these,  by  all  means  fast.  Either  abstain  from 
food,  or  clothe  yourself  with  sackcloth,  or  heap  dust 
and  ashes  on  your  head,  provided  it  be  not  only  not 
sinful,  but  beneficial ;  but  if  I  should  find  that  it  does 
not  in  my  case  contribute  to  such  good  results,  you 
should  not  say  that  I  am  gnilty  of  sin  because  I  do 
not  do  as  you  do.  In  one  case  fasting  may  be  use- 
ful, because  subservient  to  an  ulterior  result ;  in 
another  case  it  may  not  be  duty,  because  it  is  not 
conducive  to  the  end  we  have  in  view.  Let  us 
neither  feast  as  in  the  Carnival,  nor  fast  as  in  Lent, 
but  remember  that  the  kingdom  of  God  is  not  meat, 
nor  drink,  but  righteousness,  and  peace,  and  joy  in 
the  Holy  Ghost.  And  we  are  told,  in  a  very  beauti- 
ful passage  that  is  worth  recollecting,  what  is  the 
nature  of  the  fast  that  God,  after  all,  prefers.  He 
says  (Isaiah  lviii.  5-7),  "  Is  it  such  a  fast  that  I  have 
chosen  ?  a  day  for  a  man  to  afflict  his  soul  ?  is  it  to 
bow  down  his  head  as  a  bulrush,  and  to  spread  sack- 
cloth and  ashes  under  him  ?  wilt  thou  call  this  a 
fast,  and  an  acceptable  day  to  the  Lord  ?     Is  not  this 


MARK    II.  23 

the  fast  that  I  have  chosen  ?  to  loose  the  bands  of 
wickedness,  to  undo  the  heavy  burdens,  and  to  let 
the  oppressed  go  free,  and  that  ye  break  every  yoke  ? 
Is  it  not  to  deal  thy  bread  to  the  hungry,  and  that 
thou  bring  the  poor  that  are  cast  out  to  thy  house  ? 
when  thou  seest  the  naked,  that  thou  cover  him ;  and 
that  thou  hide  not  thyself  from  thine  own  flesh?" 
It  seems  to  me,  therefore,  that  the  best  fasting  in 
Lent  would  not  be  an  attack  upon  the  stomach,  but 
an  attack  on  the  pocket;  that  the  most  acceptable 
fast  in  Lent  would  be  to  contribute  more  munifi- 
cently to  the  claims  of  charity,  beneficence,  and 
truth :  for  the  fast  that  God  has  chosen  is  not 
abstinence  from  food,  or  punishment  of  self,  but 
richer  liberality  in  clothing  the  naked  and  feeding 
the  hungry ;  and  then  "  thy  light  shall  break  forth 
like  brightness,  and  thy  righteousness  like  the  noon- 
day." 

Our  Lord  then  shows  the  reasonableness  of  his 
counsels  on  fasting.  •  He  says,  "  This  is  not  the  time : 
the  Bridegroom  is  present  at  this  moment :  soon  he 
will  be  taken  away,  and  then  your  sorrow  will  sug- 
gest your  fasting;  but,  in  the  mean  time,  I  would 
show  you  the  inexpediency  of  fasting  now.  No 
man  seweth  a  piece  of  new  cloth  on  an  old  gar- 
ment ; "  that  is,  if  the  old  garment  by  long  wearing 
has  become  thin,  if  you  sew  a  new  piece  on  it,  the 
old  garment  will  give  way,  and  the  new  carry  with 
it  a  part  of  the  old,  and  the  rent  will  be  positively 
made  worse,  by  being  made  wider.  And  so  in 
reference  to  new  wine,  it  should  not  be  put  into 
old  bottles.     And  here  I  may  notice,  what  I  have 


24  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

called  attention  to  before,  that  the  wine  of  the 
Jews  was  indisputably  alcoholic  and  fermented. 
The  bottle  was  made  of  skin,  and  the  wine  was 
put  in  it  before  the  process  of  fermentation  had 
begun;  and  in  a  very  few  hours,  in  that  climate, 
the  carbonic  acid  gas  was  evolved,  and  distended 
the  skin ;  and  therefore,  if  you  were  to  take  new 
wine,  and  put  it  into  an  already  expanded  bottle, 
the  skin,  having  previously  reached  its  greatest  dis- 
tension, would  burst.  And  this  teaches  us  that 
there  is  an  appropriateness  in  every  thing ;  and  that 
only  when  things  are  done  in  the  best  way,  and  at 
the  best  time,  are  they  most  conducive  to  really 
and  ultimately  beneficent  and  good  results. 

I  notice  here  the  allusion  to  Abiathar  the  high- 
priest.  It  is  found  that  Abiathar  was  not  the  high- 
priest  at  this  time.  Abimelech  was  the  high-priest : 
Abiathar  was  his  son ;  and  Mark  calls  him  the  high- 
priest  by  anticipation.  Napoleon  was  called  the 
first  consul  once,  but  our  historians  would  speak  of 
him  as  the  emperor.  Thus,  Abiathar  is  called  the 
high-priest  by  one  of  those  anticipatory  expressions 
which  are  common  to  all  historians.  It  is  not, 
therefore,  a  contradiction  of  fact,  but  one  of  the 
indirect  and  latent  proofs  of  the  genuineness  of  the 
narrative. 


CHAPTER   II.   27. 

THE    SABBATH  —  MAN'S   MISTAKES. 

"  The  Sabbath  was  made  for  man,  and  not  man 
for  the  Sabbath,"  is  one  of  the  popular  and  prev- 
alent aphorisms  of  the  day.  It  is  a  text,  in  my 
mind,  beautiful,  instructive,  comforting ;  but  as  inter- 
preted by  many,  one  must  suppose,  not  fairly,  but 
with  an  object  in  view,  the  Sabbath  would  be  dis- 
placed from  its  pure  and  lofty  position,  and  degraded 
to  be  the  slave  of  the  passions,  and  to  pander  to  the 
prejudices  of  mankind. 

I  do  not  at  present  enter  on  the  question  about 
the  transfer  of  the  Lord's  day,  whether  it  should  be 
the  seventh  or  the  first ;  I  will  turn  your  attention 
on  a  subsequent  occasion  to  that.  I  assume  at 
present  that  the  first  day  of  the  week  is  the  Chris- 
tian Sabbath;  and  on  that  supposition, — which  you 
must  grant  me  at  present,  because  I  do  not  stop  to 
prove  it,  as  I  could  easily  do,  —  I  proceed  to  show 
in  what  respect  we  must  suppose  that  the  Sabbath 
was  made  for  man,  and  not  man  for  the  Sabbath. 

Man  requires  for  his-  body,  as  every  one  feels, 
periodical  seasons  of  repose.  The  body  is  exhausted 
with  the  toils  and  continuous  fatigue  of  the  week, 
and  it  needs  a  season  of  respite,  restoration,  and 
repose,  without  which  its  machinery  will  soon  be 
3 


26  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

worn  out,  and  its  great  purposes  arrested  long  before 
their  proper  meridian.  The  night  is  repose,  and 
every  one  feels  that  to  be  essential  at  the  close  of 
the  day ;  but  a  season  besides  the  night  seems,  not 
only  from  the  institution  of  God,  but  from  the  expe- 
rience of  man,  to  be  necessary  also.  It  has  been 
actually  ascertained  as  a  matter-of-fact,  that  a  horse 
worked  seven  days  without  intermission,  will  neither 
live  so  long  nor  do  so  much  work  as  a  horse  that 
is  worked  six  days,  and  left  to  rest  one  in  every 
seven.  I  think  the  horse,  as  a  brute,  may  have  the 
first,  second,  third,  or  any  other  day  of  the  week  for 
his  holiday,  but  it  is  essential  to  him  for  his  greatest 
efficiency  that  he  should  have  a  seventh  portion  of 
his  time  for  rest.  Our  time  for  rest  is  that  portion 
that  is  expressly  assigned  by  God,  and  our  position 
is  connected  with  our  moral  elevation  and  improve- 
ment ;  but  if  a  horse  rests  the  seventh  portion  of  his' 
time,  that  would  seem  just  —  less  will  not  do,  more 
is  not  required.  Every  one  has  found  that  a  respite 
is"  necessary  to  the  full  strength  of  his  bodily  organi- 
zation. In  fact,  every  organ  in  the  body  requires 
rest ;  or  if  not  absolute  cessation,  at  least  change  of 
posture.  For  instance,  if  the  arm  were  held  in  one 
position  for  an  hour  the  fatigue  would  be  insupport- 
able ;  but  the  same  muscles  will  hold  out  all  day 
long  without  being  exhausted,  if  there  is  variety  of 
action  and  of  movement.  The  objection  has  been 
made,  that  there  are  some  organs  in  the  human 
body  that  have  no  repose  —  the  heart  and  lungs 
for  instance.  But  the  fact  is,  the  heart  has  sixty 
working  days  and  sixty  Sabbaths  in  the  course  of 


MARK    II.  27 

a  minute.  The  heart  stops  and  starts,  and  stops 
and  starts  —  its  weekday  and  its  Sabbath,  its  work 
and  its  repose,  in  alternate  and  uninterrupted  suc- 
cession ;  and  so  with  the  lungs ;  as  if  God  would 
teach  us  by  the  law  of  our  physical  organization, 
that  there  must  be  alternate  rest  and  exertion, 
repose  and  action,  in  order  that  the  full  measure 
of  health  and  vigor  may  be  realized  by  man.  And 
the  rest  that  our  physical  economy  seems  to  require, 
is  not  so  much  in  these  periodical  seasons  absolute 
cessation  from  acting,  as  a  change  and  variety  in 
that  action.  The  night  is  the  absolute  suspension 
of  almost  all  the  powers,  physical,  intellectual,  and 
moral ;  but  the  Sabbath  is  not  prostration  of  all  the 
powers,  but  a  change  in  their  action,  a  variety,  if  I 
may  so  speak,  in  their  development.  The  Sabbath 
upon  earth  is  something  like  the  everlasting  Sab- 
bath in  heaven.  It  is  said  of  the  saints  in  one 
passage,  "  They  rest ; "  and  in  another,  "  They  rest 
not  day  and  night ; "  as  if  rest  and  resting  not,  that 
is,  rest  and  joy  from  variety  of  action,  were  the 
great  repose  that  is  enjoyed  by  the  people  of  God 
hereafter.  And  I  believe  it  has  been  proved  — 
indeed,  I  read  it  in  the  calculation  of  a  very  cele- 
brated statist  —  that  not  only  is  it  the  case  with  the 
horse,  but  that  if  the  human  frame  be  employed 
chiefly  at  the  same  occupation,  it  will  not  last  as 
long  as  it  otherwise  would.  The  law  is  struck 
into  our  constitution,  that  after  days  of  labor  there 
shall  be  days  of  rest.  The  divine  obligation  is, 
"  Work  six  days ; "  the  divine  obligation  is,  "  Repose 
one."     It  is  as  much  a  divine  duty  to  work  as  to 


28  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

rest.     He  who  will   not  work  should   not  eat,  and 
he  who  will  not  work  cannot  enjoy  the  Sabbath. 

But  I  have  assumed,  in  these  introductory  remarks, 
that  man  has  a  body  only,  and  that  repose,  consist- 
ing in  variety  of  action,  is  all  that  he  requires  ;  but 
you  must  remember,  in  the  next  place,  that  man 
is  an  intellectual'  being.  Every  one  who  earns  his 
bread  in  any  shape,  or  does  his  duty  in  that  sphere 
in  which  God  has  placed  him,  is  a  working  man. 
It  is  a  great  mistake  to  think  that  the  ploughman, 
the  weaver,  or  the  carpenter,  are  the  only  working 
men.  They  work  with  their  hands;  the  postman 
works  with  his  feet;  the  lawyer  works  with  his 
head,  as  does  also  the  minister;  but  every  one  of 
us,  in  some  shape  or  other,  is  a  working  man.  Well, 
we  have  not  only  hands  to  employ,  and  a  body  to 
be  fatigued,  but  we  have  an  intellect  to  employ, 
and  an  intellect  also  to  be  fatigued,  and  capable 
of  an  exhaustion  far  more  painful,  and  far  more 
perilous,  than  that  of  the  mere  animal  material. 
Now,  then,  in  the  case  of  those  who  work  with  the 
intellect  all  the  week,  there  is  needed  a  day  of 
repose.  The  intellect,  exhausted  with  its  pursuits, 
whether  they  be  reading,  writing,  thinking,  or  study, 
needs  repose.  But  what  is  repose  to  the  intel- 
lect? I  dare  say  many  of  you  can  bear  out  my 
own  experience,  that  if  all  employment  of  the  intel- 
lect be  withdrawn,  the  excitement  of  an  absolute 
vacancy  is  the  greatest  of  all.  If  I  have  been 
working  hard  with  my  intellect  for  eleven  months 
in  the  year,  and  if  just  for  the  twelfth  month  I  let 
it   lie   perfectly  fallow,  it   is   the   most   exhausting 


MARK    II.  29 

experiment  I  can  make.  I  find  that  I  must  not 
let  the  mind  have  absolute  inaction,  but  that,  during 
the  holiday,  I  must  turn  the  intellect  to  other 
thoughts  and  other  subjects.  Rest  is  secured  for 
the  intellect,  not  by  apathy,  but  by  variety  of  action, 
of  thought,  and  of  application.  Now  it  seems  to 
me,  that  in  this  respect  the  Sabbath  fits  most  beau- 
tifully the  literary  man.  Exhausted  by  the  intellec- 
tual toils  of  the  week,  he  comes  into  the  sanctuary ; 
and  the  voice  of  psalms,  the  supplications  at  the 
footstool,  the  exposition  of  the  chapter,  and  the 
unfolding  of  the  glorious  gospel  in  the  sermon, 
direct  all  his  thoughts  out  of  the  beaten  thorough- 
fare into  new,  beautiful,  and  fragrant  by-ways  and 
side  paths ;  and  he  is  refreshed  and  invigorated,  not 
by  repose  or  stagnation,  which  is  impossible,  but  by 
that  variety  and  change  of  thought,  which  con- 
tributes efficiently  to  the  health  and  vigor  of  the 
faculties  of  the  mind.  Hence,  the  person  who  is 
engaged  in  writing  for  the  press,  he  who  is  engaged 
in  parliamentary  debates,  the  individual  who  is 
involved  in  political  or  legal  disputes,  will  always 
find  upon  the  Sabbath  day,  not  the  same  subject 
continued,  but  a  totally  different  subject  taken  up, 
the  greatest  refreshment  for  his  mind,  and  the  com- 
pletest  repose  after  the  exhaustion  and  fatigue  of 
the  week.  And  in  the  case  of  those  people  who 
have  no  intellectual  exertion  during  the  week  — 
those  who  work  with  the  feet,  the  hand,  or  the  body 
—  then  to  them  it  would  be  the  greatest  calamity  to 
allow  the  intellect  to  become  dormant.  If  the  work- 
ing man  is  to  do  nothing  but  hew  wood,  and  dig,  or 
3* 


30  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

perform  any  other  manual  labor,  his  intellect  will 
become  dormant.  Let  your  hand  never  be  used, 
and  the  muscles  will  die.  Let  any  one  limb  or 
member  of  the  body  never  be  put  in  action,  and  it 
will  lose  all  its  power,  vitality,  and  vigor.  And  so, 
let  the  intellect  never  be  exerted,  —  the  hand  doing 
all,  and  the  intellect  passive,  —  and  the  result  will 
be,  that  you  will  degrade  our  nation  into  a  mass  of 
serfs,  by  preventing  the  development  and  exercise  of 
its  intellectual  powers  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  by 
bringing  them  to  the  house  of  God,  and  enabling 
them  to  think,  not  upon  the  current  topics  of  a  day, 
but  upon  the  solemn  subjects  of  eternity,  you  keep 
the  intellect  in  healthy,  vigorous,  and  useful  exercise. 
The  intellect,  that  during  six  days  has  been  very 
much  in  apathy,  on  the  seventh  day  is  drilled  and 
exercised  in  the  most  important  and  awakening 
topics  that  can  engage  the  human  soul. 

But  I  have  looked  at  man,  first,  as  merely  an 
animal,  secondly,  as  merely  intellectual ;  but  I  have 
to  look  at  him  in  a  third  capacity,  as  having  a  soul 
and  a  conscience.  Man  is  surely  not  merely  a  beast 
of  burden  ;  surely  he  is  not  a  mere  hack  for  the  liter- 
ary press ;  surely  it  is  not  God's  mind  that  he  should 
merely  lay  down  rails,  and  sink  shafts,  and  ran 
errands,  and  then  die.  He  has  a  soul ;  the  business 
of  eternity  is  in  his  hands.  He  has  a  Saviour  to 
believe  on,  a  God  to  serve,  and  an  eternity  to  aspire 
to.  And  if  so,  it  is  surely  necessary  that  the  wheels 
of  Mammon  should  stand  still,  that  the  business  of 
the  week  should  be  left  in  the  counting-house,  and 
that  the  soul  at  least  once  a  week,  should  breathe 


MARK    II.  31 

the  air,  and  bask  in  the  sunshine  of  that  better  and 
brighter  land,  in  the  expectation  of  which  we  are 
strangers  and  pilgrims  here,  looking  for  a  city  that 
hath  foundations,  whose  Builder  and  Maker  is  God. 
And  therefore,  in  all  the  threefold  aspects  of  man, 
a  period  of  some  sort  of  repose  seems  essential ;  and 
in  the  last  capacity  the  Sabbath  is  the  time  for 
learning  the  way  to  heaven,  and  how  to  overcome 
the  difficulties  and  obstructions  that  are  in  the  way ; 
a  day  for  leaving  the  tent  and  reposing  in  the  taber- 
nacle ;  for  shutting  the  ledger,  and  opening  the 
Bible ;  for  leaving  behind  us  the  dust  and  the  excite- 
ment of  the  world,  and  having,  not  a  holiday,  but 
a  holy  day  of  communion  and  fellowship  with  God, 
with  eternity,  with  Jesus,  with  the  Bible,  with  all 
that  can  benefit  and  bless  us  as  immortal  and 
responsible  creatures.  Thus,  the  Sabbath  is  made 
for  man.  If  he  be  a  mere  animal  for  eating  and 
drinking,  and  no  more,  then  let  him  eat,  and  drink, 
and  sleep  on  the  Sabbath.  If  he  be  a  mere  intel- 
lectual creature,  then  let  him  go  to  the  Museum, 
or  the  Crystal  Palace,  or  read  the  newspaper.  That 
will  gratify  and  satisfy  his  intellect.  But  if  he  be, 
in  addition  to  all  this,  a  spiritual,  responsible,  and 
immortal  being,  then  the  bread  that  perisheth  will 
not  feed  his  soul,  the  splendid  contents  of  the  Crys- 
tal Palace  will  not  satisfy  the  heart.  He  needs  to 
come  into  contact  with  a  higher,  a  better,  and  more 
glorious  element, — the  truth  as  it  is  revealed  in  the 
Scriptures, —  means  of  salvation  as  they  are  preached 
from  the  pulpit  on  every  Sabbath,  in  every  sanc- 
tuary in   the   land.     If,  then,  the    Sabbath   is  thus 


32  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

made  for  man,  in  the  very  highest  and  noblest 
sense  of  that  expression ;  if  it  is  made,  not  for  a 
section  of  man,  but  for  the  whole  man ;  if  it  is 
meant  and  made  to  furnish  him  with  the  means 
of  his  progress,  not  as  an  animal  only,  nor  as  an 
intellectual  being  only,  but  as  an  immortal  and 
responsible  being,  before  whom  an  eternity  of  joy,  or 
an  eternity  of  sorrow,  stretch  their  everlasting  ages,  it 
seems  to  me  that  the  Sabbath  is  not  adequately 
appreciated,  nor  properly  spent,  unless  the  chief  por- 
tion of  it  be  used  and  employed  in  thinking  about 
the  things  that  belong  to  our  everlasting  peace,  and 
in  communion  with  those  truths  that  elevate,  sanc- 
tify, and  ennoble  the  hearts,  habits,  and  lives  of  man- 
kind. Believing  that  the  Sabbath  is  thus  made  for 
man,  no  one  can  calculate  the  amount  of  benefit  which 
it  bestows  upon  the  human  family.  The  registers  of 
eternity  alone  will  show  what  a  benefactress  to  man- 
kind, what  an  ambassadress  from  heaven,  the  holy 
Christian  Sabbath  has  been.  Singular  enough,  one 
from  whose  lips  you  would  not  expect  theology,  (I 
mean  Sir  Walter  Scott),  has  said :  "  If  we  believe 
the  divine  commandment,  the  Sabbath  was  insti- 
tuted for  the  express  purposes  of  religion  alone ;  the 
time  set  apart  as  the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord,  a  day  on 
which  not  to  work  our  own  works,  nor  to  think  our 
own  thoughts.  The  precept  is  positive,  the  purpose 
is  clear.  For  our  eternal  benefit  a  certain  space  of 
every  week  is  appointed,  which  is  sacred  from  all 
other  avocations,  save  those  imposed  by  necessity 
and  mercy,  and  is  to  be  employed  in  religious  duties 
and  privileges  alone."     We  do  not  see  the  connec- 


MARK    II. 


tion  of  the  good  with  the  Sabbath,  but  because 
unseen  it  is  no  less  real.  I  have  not  the  least  doubt 
that  an  influence  goes  forth  from  every  Sabbath, 
that  tells  upon  the  tone  of  our  parliamentary  debates, 
that  influences  our  judicial  decisions,  and  that  imparts 
to  all  ranks  and  classes  of  men  —  the  exchange,  the 
counting-house,  the  transactions  of  the  world  —  a 
sublimer,  holier,  and  loftier  tone.  I  am  sure  that 
our  national  prosperity,  with  all  its  fruits,  has  a  con- 
nection with  the  Sabbath.  The  great  tree  seems  to 
stand  alone,  but  its  roots  below  the  ground  stretch 
within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Sabbath,  and  are 
refreshed  and  invigorated  there.  There  is  a  public 
conscience  as  well  as  public  opinion;  and  how  much 
of  all  that  is  purest,  and  holiest,  and  best  in  public 
opinion,  may  be  traced  to  the  influence  of  the  Sab- 
bath, and  the  exercises  of  the  sanctuary,  eternity,  not 
time,  will  be  able  to  unfold. 

Apart  from  this,  there  is  one  beautiful  feature  in 
the  Sabbath  that  ought  never  to  be  let  go,  and  of 
all  men  the  poor  man  ought  to  hold  it  fast  for  this 
feature  only :  it  is  this,  —  that  on  that  day,  in  the 
house  of  prayer,  the  rich  and  the  poor  meet  together, 
and  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  common  peerage  recollect 
their  magnificent  birthright,  "  The  Lord  is  the  Maker 
of  us  all."  It  seems  to  me,  that  the  Sabbath's  sanc- 
tuary is  the  weekly  republic,  the  purest  and  holiest 
democracy,  where  the  highest  of  the  land  are  in 
nothing  depressed,  and  where  the  lowliest  and  the 
humblest  are  elevated  and  ennobled.  The  Sabbath 
is  not  made  for  the  noble,  nor  for  the  commoner,  — 
not  for  the  ruler,  nor  for  the  subject,  —  but  for  that 


34  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

primeval  nature,  that  manhood,  which  underlies  all 
the  distinctions  of  our  world,  and  on  which,  as  the 
only  foundation,  these  distinctions  can  grow  and 
make  progress.  In  the  house  of  prayer  our  gracious 
Queen  is  simply  the  woman, — the  highest  noble  is 
simply  the  man;  and  the  poorest  and  most  forlorn 
orphan  is  nothing  less.  There  they  meet,  and  realize 
the  thought,  "  God  is  the  Maker  of  us  all."  And  I 
have  often  thought,  that  in  the  house  of  prayer  there 
should  be  all  the  dead-level,  if  I  may  call  it  so,  of  the 
grave.  I  never  like  to  see  in  the  sanctuary  a  mag- 
nificent pew  for  a  great  man,  and  a  very  inferior  pew 
for  the  poor  man.  I  like  the  pews  to  have  all  one 
dead-level,  and  all  to  appear  in  the  sanctuary  unno- 
ticed, undistinguished,  unknown,  as  they  shall  appear 
at  the  judgment-seat  of  Christ,  with  nothing  but  the 
awful  responsibility  of  saints  or  sinners  in  the  sight 
of  God.  There,  every  valley  should  be  exalted,  and 
every  hill  should  be  made  low ;  and  the  man  with 
the  gold  ring,  and  the  man  that  has  none,  should  be 
equally  welcome,  and  occupy,  not  a  place  low  and 
levelling,  but  a  platform  of  equal  dignity. 

But  it  would  be  altogether  exaggerating  the  Sab- 
bath, and  lifting  it  from  its  own  beautiful  and  proper 
position,  if  I  were  to  say  that  it  is  the  cause  of  all 
the  social,  national,  'mercantile,  and  commercial 
morality,  that  prevails  in  and  characterizes  our  land. 
It  is  not  the  cause  of  it,  but  it  is  unquestionably  the 
condition  of  it.  Christianity  is  the  nurse,  the  foun- 
tain, and  the  root  of  all ;  but  the  Sabbath  seems  to 
be  the  necessary  condition  of  Christianity  putting 
forth  its  benign  and  beneficent  influences.     Let  me 


MARK    II.  35 

explain  this.  It  is  the  wind  that  moves  the  ship ; 
the  wind  is  the  cause,  progress  is  the  effect,  but  the 
ocean  on  which  it  is  afloat  is  the  condition  of  the 
one  and  the  other.  Archimedes  said  he  could 
move  the  world,  if  he  had  a  place  to  plant  the  ful- 
crum. His  strength  would  be  the  cause,  the  moving 
of  the  world  would  be  the  effect ;  but  the  place  on 
which  the  lever  rested  would  be  the  condition  of  it, 
which  he  could  not  have.  So  Christianity  is  the 
cause  and  source  of  all  that  is  beautiful,  holy,  and 
beneficent  in  the  land;  these  fruits  are  the  magni- 
ficent results ;  but  the  condition  of  Christianity, 
exerting  its  widest,  best,  and  mightiest  effect,  is 
the  Sabbath,  the  sanctuary,  and  their  solemn  and 
holy  observances.  And  surely  you  would  not  like 
to  do  away  with  this  beautiful  thought,  that  once 
a  week  this  holy  missionary  from  the  skies  should 
knock  at  your  door ;  that  on  one  day  in  the  seven 
its  beautiful  light  should  shine  into  your  casement ; 
that  once  a  week  the  chimes  of  its  bells  from  ten 
thousand  belfries  should  be  heard  ringing  sweet 
music  throughout  the  land, —  "Let  us  go  into  the 
house  of  the  Lord;  our  feet  shall  stand  within 
Jerusalem."  "  Ho,  every  one  that  thirsteth,  come 
ye  to  the  waters,  and  he  that  hath  no  money; 
come  ye,  buy  and  eat;  yea,  come,  buy  wine  and 
milk,  without  money  and  without  price." 

Man  as  an  animal,  an  intellectual  being,  as  a 
moral,  immortal,  responsible,  and  conscious  being, 
must  have  a  Sabbath ;  not  of  absolute  stagnation, 
which  would  only  be  misery,  but  of  such  alteration 
of  thought,  of  such  variety  of  employment,  that  he 


36  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

shall  be  refreshed  while  he  is  enlightened,  strength- 
ened while  he  rests,  and  helped  on  by  bread  that 
dieth  not,  till  he  reach  the  rest  that  remaineth  for  the 
people  of  God. 

And  now  let  me  notice,  for  this  is  only  touching 
some  of  the  more  prefatory  and  extrinsic  features  of 
the  Christian  Sabbath,  that  in  every  institution  upon 
earth,  appointed  and  organized  by  the  ablest  and 
wisest  legislators  of  all  times,  periods  of  rest  and 
repose,  or,  if  yon  like,  Sabbaths,  have  been  devised 
for  man.  The  Jewish  economy,  which  it  is  the 
fashion  to  deride  as  an  old  and  obsolete  thing,  to  be 
consigned  to  Aaron's  wardrobe,  and  to  be  worn  no 
more  by  the  world,  not  only  gave  the  Jew  every 
seventh  day,  but  every  seventh  year,  and  every 
seventh  seventh  year,  that  is,  every  fiftieth  year, 
which  was  a  year  of  jubilee,  when  all  that  had  gone 
wrong  in  the  world's  machinery  might  be  readjusted, 
and  put  again  in  its  proper  place.  Solon  and  Numa, 
the  most  celebrated  legislators  of  ancient  heathen- 
dom, appointed  regular  festivals  for  repose,  and 
sequestration  from  the  employments  of  the  world, 
and  for  consecration  to  intellectual,  moral,  and  other 
enjoyments. 

Egypt,  Persia,  and  Chaldea,  had  also  their  festi- 
vals. And  I  may  add,  what  is  still  more  striking, 
that  the  experiment  once  was  made  by  the  fanatics 
of  1793,  —  first,  to  expunge  God  from  the  world, 
and  next,  and  most  logically,  to  expunge  his  shadow, 
the  Sabbath,  from  the  earth ;  but  Robespierre,  after 
he  had  made  the  desperate  experiment,  was  con- 
strained to  say,  "  The  world  will  go  to  pieces  if  we 


MARK    II.  37 

cannot  find  a  God."  And  so  strongly  did  they  feel 
that  without  a  Sabbath  the  world  could  not  go  on, 
that  they  said,  "  We  will  not  have  the  Christian 
Sabbath,  one  day  in  seven ;  but,  in  order  to  uproot 
all  its  recollections  and  associations,  and  yet  provide 
for  man,  we  will  have  one  day  in  ten."  They  there- 
fore voted  "  No  God,"  instead  of  the  God  of  Abra- 
ham ;  and  they  voted  "  No  Sabbath,"  but  substituted 
for  the  Sabbath  what  they  called  the  Decades,  or 
every  tenth  day.  But  what  was  the  result  ?  In  the 
course  of  a  few  years,  as  if  the  Sabbath  was  made 
for  man,  the  world  fell  back  into  the  olden  ruts ;  it 
seized  the  Sabbath  again  as  too  precious  to  be  let 
go ;  and  all  the  infidelity  of  France  has  passed 
away,  like  a  deluge  that  covered  the  earth  for  a  sea- 
son with  wrecks;  and  the  Sabbath,  badly  as  it  is 
observed,  much  as  it  is  desecrated,  still  remains  for 
France. 

We  have,  in  these  facts,  the  strongest  corroborative 
proofs  that  a  day  of  rest  is  needed,  that  nations  have 
found  that  they  cannot  do  without  it,  and  that 
it  was  found,  when  the  experiment  was  made,  that  a 
tenth  day  was  not  enough,  but  that  a  seventh  must 
be  had  recourse  to.  And  now,  what  is  the  result  at 
the  present  moment?  That  the  first  day  of  the 
week  —  be  it  right  or  wrong  I  do  not  stop  to  discuss 
—  has  so  rooted  itself  upon  the  history  of  the  world, 
has  so  interwoven  its  very  fibres  and  roots  with  the 
human  mind,  the  human  conscience,  and  the  human 
heart,  that  there  is  no  question  that  that  day  will  be 
observed  as  a  holiday,  if  it  be  not  observed  as  a  holy 
day,  for  generations  yet  to  come.  I  do  not  believe 
4 


33  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

that  the  working  classes,  however  much  some  of 
tli cm  may  be  mistaken  in  connection  with  these  sub- 
jects, will  ever  give  up  their  Sabbath  to  the  service 
of  man.  I  do  not  believe  that  the  shops  will  all  be 
open  upon  the  Sunday.  I  do  not  think  that  human 
nature  could  make  so  gigantic  a  sacrifice  at  any 
shrine,  as  the  awful  and  perilous  sacrifice  of  its 
Sabbaths.  Well  then,  if  this  be  so,  if  all  are  let 
loose  upon  that  day,  if  the  shops  are  shut,  business 
suspended,  work  given  over,  and  the  working-dress 
laid  aside,  as  the  day  will  be,  and  now  is,  it  will  be 
either  employed  as  a  holiday,  or  as  a  holy  day ;  it 
will  either  be  (and  mark  my  words,  for  they  are 
drawn  from  knowing  what  human  nature  is)  a  day 
for  the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord,  or  a  day  for  the  satur- 
nalia of  Rome ;  it  will  either  be  a  day  for  a  gigantic 
blessing,  or  a  day  for  a  national  curse.  The  Sab- 
bath will  be  employed  for  some  purpose.  A  man 
cannot  lie  down  and  sleep  all  the  Sabbath,  he  cannot 
spend  all  the  day  in  the  public-house,  bad  as  that 
would  be.  He  must  have  something  to  do  on  that 
day ;  and  it  will  either  be  a  curse  or  a  blessing  to 
him  —  a  day  for  pandemonium,  or  a  day  preparatory 
for  Paradise. 

Let  us,  who  profess  to  have  that  which  can 
sanctify  and  sweeten  it,  so  commend  the  Sabbath  to 
those  that  are  about  us,  that  they  shall  call  it  what  it 
was  called  by  Isaiah,  and  what  it  should  be  called 
by  us,  a  day  on  which  we  do  not  our  own  pleasure, 
but  a  delight,  honorable,  the  day  holy  to  the  Lord. 
And  how  shall  we  do  so  ?  First,  let  us  not  spend 
our  Sabbaths  as  if  they  were  Jewish  ones.     It  is 


MARK     II.  39 

the  Christian  Sabbath,  not  a  pharisaic  sabattism. 
Secondly,  let  us  show  that  our  Sabbaths  make  us 
more  cheerful,  more  beneficent,  more  improved  in  all 
that  ennobles,  dignifies,  benefits,  and  blesses  man- 
kind. And  next,  let  us,  as  preachers  —  as  ministers 
—  try  in  the  Christian  congregation  to  bring  forth 
upon  the  Sabbaths,  in  our  sermons  and  expositions, 
that  which  will  so  interest  people's  minds,  and  so 
impress  men's  hearts,  that  they  will  come  to  the 
sanctuary,  and  say,  "  We  rejoiced  when  it  was  said 
unto  us,  Let  us  go  into  the  courts  of  the  Lord." 
Addressing,  as  one  must,  an  extremely  mixed  congre- 
gation, I  do  not  think  that  men  will  long  come  to 
hear  long  theological  discussions.  You  come  here 
weary,  wanting  to  be  refreshed ;  weak,  seeking  to  be 
made  strong  ;  downcast,  seeking  to  be  cheered  ; 
drooping,  seeking  to  be  encouraged ;  and  our  great 
object  in  preaching  the  everlasting  gospel  ought 
to  be  so  to  preach  it,  that  you  can  say,  "  I  find 
in  these  walls  food  as  sweet,  and  far  more  delicious 
-and  nutritive,  than  I  can  find  within  the  pale  of  the 
Crystal  Palace;  and  if  you  find  your  enjoyment 
there,  I  find  mine  here."  You  may  depend  upon  it, 
that  however  valuable  legislation  may  be,  we  must 
make  the  service  attractive,  not  by  gewgaws  and 
Popish  decorations,  but  by  speaking  to  men's  hearts, 
minds,  and  consciences,  and  then  they  will  say,  "  We 
have  here  all  the  attractions  of  the  Crystal  Palace, 
and  we  have,  besides,  all  that  is  requisite  to  make  us 
wiser,  holier,  happier,  and  fitter  for  heaven  and  ever- 
lasting joy." 


40  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

Note.  —  The  Sabbath  is  an  ordinance  for  man's  rest,  both  actually 
and  typically,  as  setting  forth  the  rest  that  remains  for  God's  people. 
(Heb.  iv.  9.)  But  He  who  is  now  speaking  has  taken  on  himself  man- 
hood,—  tbe  whole  nature  of  man,  —  and  is  rightful  Lord  over  crea- 
tion, as  granted  to  man,  and  of  all  that  is  made  for  man,  and  there- 
fore of  the  Sabbath.  The  whole  dispensation  of  time  is  created  for 
man,  —  for  Christ,  as  He  is  man,  —  and  is  in  His  absolute  power.  — 
Alford. 


CHAPTER    III. 

INFLUENCE  OF  THE  HEART  ON  THE  HEAD  —  SABBATH  DAY  DUTIES  — 

ANGER COALITION  AGAINST  JESUS  —  THE  GREAT  PHYSICIAN  — 

THE    TWELVE  —  EARNESTNESS  —  BLASPHEMY — THE    UNPARDON- 
ABLE SIN  —  THE    TRULY  BLESSED. 

Again,  it  appears,  Jesus  violated  what  were  phari- 
saically held  to  be  the  obligations  and  the  sanctities 
of  the  Sabbath  day.  A  man  came  to  him  with  a 
withered  hand,  and  the  scribes  and  Pharisees,  not 
anxious  to  know  whether  he  was  the  Messiah,  but 
far  more  anxious  to  ensnare,  and,  if  possible,  destroy 
him,  watched  him,  to  see  whether  he  would  be  guilty 
of  what  they  in  their  popular  and  perverted  theology 
held  to  be  a  breach  of  the  Sabbath.  How  sad  it  is 
that  the  heart  very  often  leads  the  head,  and  that 
what  one  wishes  to  be  true,  the  intellect,  too  subser- 
vient, attempts  at  least  to  prove,  and  to  the  heart 
satisfactorily  succeeds  in  proving  to  be  true !  The 
scribes  and  Pharisees  must  have  seen  enough  to 
demonstrate  the  Messiahship  of  Jesus  ;  but  their 
hearts  were  so  pervaded  by  malice,  and  avarice,  and 
ecclesiastical  pride,  and  national  glory,  that  they 
would  not,  and  therefore  they  could  not  yield  their 
homage  to  Him  who  came  "  despised  and  rejected 
of  men,  a  Man  of  sorrows,  and  acquainted  with 
grief."     May  our  hearts  be  holy,  that  thus  we  may 


42  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

see  clearly.  But  we  read  that  Jesus,  with  that  calm- 
ness and  majesty  which  were  the  characteristics  of  a 
present  God,  regardless  of  the  prejudices  of  some, 
of  the  passions  of  others,  and  of  the  hostility  and 
cruelty  of  more,  said  instantly  to  the  man  who  had 
the  withered  hand,  "  Stand  forth  ; "  and  then,  in  order 
that  they  might  be  convinced  by  their  own  judg- 
ments, he  said,  "  Is  it  lawful  to  do  good  on  the  Sab- 
bath day  ?  Is  this  lawful  ?  The  law  of  nature,  and 
the  law  of  Moses,  certainly  indicate  that  it  is  always 
and  everywhere  lawful  to  do  good.  If  a  thing  be 
wrong,  it  is  not  lawful  to  do  it  upon  any  day  ;  if  it 
be  right,  it  is  lawful  to  do  it  on  the  Sabbath  day. 
Is  it  lawful  to  save  life  ?  or  to  kill  ?  "  If  they  had 
said,  "It  is  not  lawful,"  then  they  would  have  said 
that  philanthropy,  beneficence,  and  goodness,  on  the 
Sabbath  were  sins.  If  they  had  said,  "  It  is  law- 
ful," then  their  own  admission  would  have  proved 
their  erroneous  notions  of  the  Sabbath  day,  and 
would  have  justified  Him.  They,  therefore,  held 
their  peace. 

Then  Jesus  "looked  round  about  on  them  with 
anger,  being  grieved  for  the  hardness  of  their  hearts." 
I  alluded  to  this  passage  in  the  morning,  when 
we  read  an  almost  parallel  one  in  the  11th  chapter 
of  the  book  of  Exodus,  where  we  are  told  that 
Moses  was  angry  at  the  hardness  of  Pharaoh's  heart. 
So  here  we  read  that  the  cause  of  the  anger  of  Jesus 
was  the  hardness  of  these  people's  hearts.  I  argued 
in  the  morning  that  there  is  no  sin  in  anger.  Man 
was  made  as  truly  to  be  angry,  as  he  was  made  to 
laugh,  to  fear,  to  sympathize,  to  feel.     The  sin  con- 


MARK    III.  43 

sists  in  its  excess,  not  in  its  existence.  But,  in  the 
case  of  Jesus,  that  anger  was  modified  by  another 
feeling  —  grief,  at  the  hardness  of  their  hearts;  that 
is  to  say,  his  anger  was  less  with  the  men,  and  more 
with  the  passions  of  which  they  were  the  unhappy 
victims.  It  is  always  a  right  state  of  mind,  when 
we  can  so  love  the  man,  that  we  are  less  angry  with 
him,  and  more  grieved  at  the  sin  by  which  he  is 
branded.  Jesus  so  loved  the  sinner,  that  he  died  for 
him :  he  so  detested  the  sin,  that  he  shed  his  blood 
that  it  might  be  cancelled.  Anger  in  the  bosom  of 
Jesus  was  not  antipathy  to  a  person,  but  sorrow  at  a 
predominant  and  unhappy  sin. 

"  The  Pharisees  went  forth,  and  straightway  took 
counsel  with  the  Herodians,"  an  infidel  sect,  "  against 
him,  how  they  might  destroy  him."  The  Pharisee, 
who  was  the  great  traditionist  of  the  age,  and  the 
Herodian,  the  great  sceptic  of  the  age,  coalesced, 
when  the  Lord  of  glory  was  to  be  put  down.  How 
sad  is  it  that  scepticism  does  not  so  hate  superstition, 
nor  superstition  so  hate  scepticism,  as  they  both  hate 
the  simple  truth  as  it  is  in  Christ  Jesus !  "When 
truth  is  to  be  extinguished,  the  infidel  and  the  Roman- 
ist will  coalesce  and  combine  together,  merging  their 
internal  antipathy  in  a  common  hatred  to  that  which 
condemns  them  both. 

We,  read  then,  that  Jesus  withdrew  himself  with 
his  disciples  to  the  sea  of  Galilee,  and  a  great  multi- 
tude followed  him.  We  still  find  that  whilst  the 
scribes  and  Pharisees,  the  ecclesiastical  rulers  of  the 
land,  hated  him,  the  common  people  heard  him 
gladly.     Here  "a  great  multitude  from  Galilee  fol- 


44  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

lowed  him,  and  from  Judaea,  and  from  Jerusalem, 
and  from  Idumaea,  and  from  beyond  Jordan  ;  and 
they  about  Tyre  and  Sidon,  a  great  multitude,  when 
they  had  heard  what  great  things  he  did,  came  unto 
him."  We  read,  then,  that  "  he  healed  many ;  inso- 
much that  they  pressed  upon  him  for  to  touch  him, 
as  many  as  had  plagues."  The  word  "  plague  "  does 
not  convey  the  strict  meaning.  Hterfi  means  prop- 
erly, "  a  blow,"  or  "  stroke."  The  word  fiaan^  here 
employed  denotes  a  scourge.  Hence,  the  plagues  in 
Egypt  were  literally  strokes,  or  blows,  inflicted  by 
God.  But  the  word  "  plague,"  in  its  popular  and 
modern  sense,  means  properly  a  pestilence  or  epi- 
demic. The  verse  here  ought  to  be  rendered,  "  as 
many  as  had  diseases  or  afflictions  from  the  hand  of 
God,"  these  Jesus  healed ;  "  and  unclean  spirits,  when 
they  saw  him,  fell  down  before  him,  and  cried,  saying, 
Thou  art  the  Son  of  God."  To  say  so  was  equiva- 
lent to  saying,  "  Thou  art  very  God,  the  brightness 
of  God's  glory,  and  the  express  image  of  his  person." 
Now,  how  could  the  mere  multitude,  unacquainted 
with  his  divine  character,  but  deeply  impressed  by 
the  miracles  he  wrought,  have  said,  "  Thou  art  the 
Son  of  God,"  unless  they  were  divinely  taught? 
These  unclean  spirits  recognized  the  presence  of  a 
loftier  than  man,  and  saw,  in  Jesus,  the  bruiser  of  the 
serpent's  head ;  through  whom  judgment  should  be 
inflicted  upon  him,  and  by  whom  "  the  old  serpent " 
should  be  bound  in  chains  for  a  thousand  years,  and 
afterwards  cast  into  Gehenna,  and  no  more  suffered 
to  come  forth  to  tempt  the  nations ;  and  therefore, 
perfectly  orthodox  in  creed,  but  malignant  in  charac- 


MARK    III.  45 

ter ;  they  said,  by  constraint,  not  as  an  offering  of 
devotion,  "  Thou  art  the  Son  of  God."  It  is  a  very 
solemn  thought,  that  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall 
yet  acknowledge  Jesus  in  this  character,  that  all  the 
lost  in  misery,  and  the  saved  in  glory,  shall  equally 
admit  that  he  is  Lord  of  all.  The  one  class  shall 
admit  it  is  a  freewill  offering  joyously  given  ;  the 
other  shall  express  it  as  a  great  and  awful  sacrifice 
irresistibly  exacted.  Heaven  shall  praise  him  joy- 
fully, and  with  delight;  hell  shall  praise  him  reluc- 
tantly, but  really.  From  height  and  depth,  from  east 
and  west,  from  north  and  south,  God  shall  be  glori- 
fied, either  in  the  joyful  songs  of  the  saved,  or  in  the 
reluctant  acknowledgments  of  those  who  would  not 
be  saved,  and  who  have  perished  entirely  because 
they  rejected  him  the  only  Saviour. 

We  then  read,  in  the  14th  verse,  that  "  He  ordained 
twelve."  The  word  "ordained"  is  not  the  usual 
word  so  translated  in  the  Epistles ;  it  means  that  he 
"  selected,"  "  elected,"  or  "  constituted  "  twelve,  that 
he  might  send  them  forth  to  preach  the  Gospel,  the 
great  function  of  the  minister  of  Christ,  Why  he 
chose  twelve  it  is  difficult  to  say.  Perhaps,  if  he 
had  taken  fewer,  it  would  have  been  too  limited  a 
testimony.  By  taking  twelve  he  took  a  competent 
number  who  could  be  witnesses  of  the  facts  they 
saw,  and  of  the  truths  they  heard;  and  thus  go  forth 
as  eye-witnesses  and  ear-witnesses,  to  proclaim  the 
unsearchable  riches  of  Christ.  Or,  perhaps,  he 
selected  twelve,  because  that  was  the  number  of 
the  tribes  of  Israel.  Their  names  are  given  here, 
"  Simon,  surnamed   Peter ;   and  James   the  son  of 


46  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

Zebedee,  and  John  the  brother  of  James;  and  he  sur- 
named  them  Boanerges,  which  is,  The  sons  of  thun- 
der: and  Andrew,  and  Philip,  and  Bartholomew, 
and  Matthew,  and  Thomas,  and  James  the  son  of 
Alphaeus,  and  Thaddaeus,  and  Simon  the  Canaanite, 
and  Judas  Iscariot,"  to  whom  is  attached  still  the 
ignominious  feature,  "  which  also  betrayed  him." 

We  then  read,  that  when  "they  went  into  a  house, 
the  multitude  cometh  together  again,  so  that  they 
could  not  so  much  as  eat  bread.  And  when  his 
friends  heard  of  it "  —  that  evidently  is  his  relatives 
according  to  the  flesh  —  "  they  went  out  to  lay  hold 
on  him:  for  they  said,  He  is  beside  himself."  He 
had  lived  long  in  obscurity ;  he  had  made  no  preten- 
sions, when  under  thirty  years  of  age,  to  teach,  or  to 
preach,  in  all  probability;  but  now  he  goes  forth 
preaching  and  teaching,  and  doing  many  wonderful 
works ;  and  therefore,  they  said,  "  He  is  beside  him- 
self." But  are  these  not  the  types  of  the  world  still  ? 
Let  a  man  show  as  much  zeal  in  the  service  of  God, 
as  one  shows  in  the  service  of  an  earthly  master,  and 
thousands  will  say,  "  Much  religion  has  made  him 
mad."  Let  a  man  show  that  he  is  in  earnest  about 
his  soul,  that  he  is  in  earnest  in  teaching  others  the 
way  to  heaven,  that  he  is  in  earnest  in  spreading  that 
blessed  Gospel,  that  is  the  savor  of  life  unto  life  in 
all  that  believe  it,  and  his  friends  will  propose  that 
he  be  restrained ;  they  will  say  he  is  beside  himself. 
How  strange  it  is,  that  the  world  will  bear  with  the 
most  exalted  enthusiasm  in  a  patriot,  with  the 
most  devoted  enthusiasm  in  a  statesman,  with  great 
enthusiasm  in  a  philanthropist ;  but  the  moment  that 


MARK    III.  47 

the  enthusiasm  which  is  so  beautiful  and  so  appre- 
ciated in  the  things  of  time  is  transferred  to  a  subject 
worthy  of  its  noblest  fervor,  then  the  world  says  that 
much  religion  has  made  you  mad.  But  surely,  if  a 
barrister  speaks  with  enthusiasm  for  his  client,  if  a 
physician  studies  enthusiastically  the  disease  of  his 
patient,  if  a  statesman  pleads  enthusiastically  in  the 
House  of  Commons,  how  much  more  should  a  Chris- 
tian minister,  a  Christian  teacher,  a  district  visitor,  a 
Sabbath  school  teacher,  speak,  and  plead,  and  act 
enthusiastically  on  behalf  of  Christ  Jesus! 

We  then  read,  that  the  scribes  who  came  from 
Jerusalem,  not  so  charitable  as  his  friends,  did  not 
ascribe  his  conduct  to  enthusiasm  or  excess  of  feel- 
ing, but  they  ascribed  it  wickedly  to  the  inspiration 
of  Satan;  and  asserted  that  the  Son  of  God  cast 
out  devils  —  not  denying  the  supernatural  and 
miraculous  facts,  but  ascribing  the  energy  by  which 
they  were  done  to  Beelzebub,  that  is,  a  name  given 
by  them  to  Satan,  the  prince  of  the  devils.  This 
was  a  very  awful  and  most  flagrantly  wicked  charge, 
and  so  utterly  inapplicable  to  the  Son  of  God,  that 
it  is  spoken  of  as  one  of  those  sins  that  are  in  danger 
of  eternal  damnation.  But  Jesus,  not  in  the  least 
angry,  as  he  was  with  the  hardness  of  their  hearts, 
but  rather  pitying  the  misguided  men  who  had  made 
the  charge,  reasons  with  them  quietly  and  calmly  as 
rational  men;  thus  teaching  us,  that  however  extrav- 
agant the  charge  may  be  that  is  made  against  us, 
yet,  if  we  speak  calmly  and  sensibly,  there  is  some- 
thing in  human  nature  that  will  lead  it  to  listen  the 
moment  we  do  so.     Some  one  has  said,   "  Speak 


48  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

common  sense  to  a  mob,  and  the  mob  will  be  quiet" 
Speak  what  is  rational  to  those  who  are  infuriated 
against  you,  and  they  will  listen  for  a  little  to  what 
you  have  got  to  say.  On  this  occasion  Jesus  spoke 
to  these  scribes  and  Pharisees  with  intense  common 
sense.  "  How  is  it  possible  ?  How  can  Satan  cast 
out  Satan  ?  Would  he  commit  suicide  ?  Would 
he  rise  up  against  himself?  Has  such  a  phenome- 
non any  counterpart  in  your  experience  ?  You  know 
that  if  a  house  be  divided  against  itself — if  one  half 
rise  up  against  the  other  half  of  the  family  —  the 
house  will  very  soon  be  destroyed.  If  Satan  were 
to  cast  out  Satan,  he  would  commit  suicide.  There- 
fore, how  can  you  suppose  that  he  will  help  me  to 
depress  and  put  down  that  very  kingdom  which  is 
the  strength,  the  glory,  and  the  stronghold  of  Satan 
himself?"  And  then,  rising  from  reasoning  with 
them,  from  the  lowliness  of  an  arguer  to  the  dignity 
and  sacredness  of  a  judge,  he  says,  "  Verily  I  say 
unto  you,  All  sins  shall  be  forgiven  unto  the  sons  of 
men,  and  blasphemies  wherewith  soever  they  shall 
blaspheme  :  but  he  that  shall  blaspheme  against  the 
Holy  Ghost  hath  never  forgiveness,  but  is  in  danger 
of  eternal  damnation:  because  they  said,  He  hath  an 
unclean  spirit."  Very  many  excellent  Christians 
have  been  perplexed  by  the  fear  that  they  may  have 
committed  what  is  called  the  sin  against  the  Holy 
Ghost.  Well,  as  far  as  this  passage  gives  us  infor- 
mation concerning  it,  it  is  obvious  that  the  sin 
against  the  Holy  Ghost  could  have  been  committed 
only  in  the  days  of  our  Saviour's  pilgrimage  upon 
earth ;  and,  that  the  development  in  which  it  showed 


MARK    III.  49 

itself  was  ascribing  his  miracles  to  the  inspiration  of 
the  devil,  instead  of  the  inspiration  of  God.  The 
only  other  form  in  which  the  sin  can  possibly  exist 
now  is,  in  final  resistance  to  the  offers  of  the  Gospel. 
There  is  no  human  being  for  whom  there  is  not 
instant  pardon  the  instant  that  he  turns  to  God,  and 
seeks  forgiveness  in  the  name  of  Jesus.  There  is  no 
man  upon  earth,  whilst  he  lives  and  is  within  the 
reach  of  the  Gospel,  who  can  be  said  to  have  com- 
mitted an  unpardonable  sin,  and  for  whom  there  is 
not  instant,  complete,  and  everlasting  forgiveness  in 
Jesus.  Be  you  sure  that  you  are  resting  on  the 
Saviour's  sacrifice,  that  you  trust  in  the  Saviour's 
righteousness,  and  that  you  are  living  as  members, 
disciples,  and  followers  of  the  Lamb ;  and  you  need 
not  be  afraid  that  you  have  committed  an  unpardon- 
able sin,  of  that  which  is  here  called  the  sin  against 
the  Holy  Ghost. 

We  have,  at  the  close  of  the  chapter,  a  very  inter- 
esting incident.  "  The  multitude  sat  about  him,  and 
they  said  unto  him,  Behold,  thy  mother  and  thy 
brethren  without  seek  for  thee."  That  was  the 
Virgin  Mary,  and  some  of  the  relatives  of  Jesus, 
who  were  standing  without,  seeking  him.  These  he 
answered  in  very  striking  language,  which  showed 
that  the  place  Mary  once  had  in  reference  to  him 
had  now  ceased.  The  moment  that  he  entered  on 
his  ministry  his  language  to  Mary  was  deferential, 
but  faithful :  "  Mary,"  or  "  Woman,  what  have  I  to 
do  with  thee  ?  "  This  was  when  she  thrust  in  her 
own  officious  services ;  and  when  others  pleaded  the 
claims  of  Mary,  as  much  as  to  say,  "  You  must  not 
5 


50  SCRIPTURE    HEADINGS. 

be  so  engaged  with  the  outer  works  of  the  world,  as 
to  forget  your  mother  and  your  brethren."  Jesus 
said,  "  Who  is  my  mother,  or  my  brethren  ?  And 
he  looked  round  about  on  them  which  sat  about 
him,  and  said,  Behold  my  mother  and  my  brethren ! 
For  whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  God,  the  same  is 
my  brother,  and  my  sister,  and  mother."  Jesus  here 
teaches  us  that  every  true  Christian  is,  in  reference 
to  Christ,  just  as  blessed  as  was  the  Virgin  Mary. 
She  was  blessed  in  being  the  mother  of  our  Lord 
according  to  the  flesh,  and  truly  did  she  sing,  "  All 
generations  shall  call  me  blessed;"  but  more  blessed, 
I  believe,  are  they  who  hear  the  word  of  God,  and 
do  it.  They  who  hear  God's  word,  and  do  his  will, 
and  walk  in  his  ways,  are  elevated  to  a  dignity 
which  is  not  possessed  by  Mary  and  his  brethren 
according  to  the  flesh :  for  "  the  same  is  my  brother, 
and  my  sister,  and  mother." 


Note.  —  The  unclean  spirits  are  here  spoken  of  in  the  person  of 
those  possessed  by  them,  and  the  two  fused  together ;  for  as  it  was 
impossible  that  any  but  the  spirits  could  have  known  that  He  was  the 
Son  of  God,  so  it  was  the  material  body  of  the  possessed  which  fell 
down  before  Him,  and  their  voice  which  uttered  the  cry.  See  note 
on  Matt.  viii.  32.  The  notion  of  the  semi-rationalists,  that  the  sick 
identified  with  the  demons  (Meyer),  is  at  once  refuted  by  the  universal 
agreement  of  the  testimony  given  on  such  occasions,  that  Jesus  was 
the  Son  of  God.  —  Afford. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

POPULARITY   OF   TEACHING  OP  JESUS — PARABLE — PABLE  —  ALLE- 
GORY—  DIFFERENT  WORDS  FOR    SAME   TRUTHS  —  THE  SOWER 

DIFFERENCE   IN   MATTHEW  AND  MARK THE   MUSTARD-TREE  — 

JESUS  IN  A  STORM. 

"We  see  here  another  proof  of  the  great  popularity 
of  the  teaching  of  our  blessed  Lord ;  for  it  is  said, 
that  when  "  he  began  to  teach  by  the  seaside,"  as 
the  only  tesselated  floor,  and  on  a  rock,  probably,  as 
the  only  pulpit,  "  there  was  gathered  unto  him  a 
great  multitude ; "  that  is,  the  common  people,  who 
are  said  to  have  heard  him  gladly  ;  and  "  he  entered 
into  a  ship,"  in  order  that  he  might  be  disentangled 
from  the  maze  of  an  over  crowding  people  ;  "  and  the 
whole  multitude  was  by  the  sea  on  the  land."  And 
then,  it  is  said,  "  he  taught  them  many  things  by 
parables."  What  is  a  parable  ?  A  fable  is  an 
imaginary  thing,  improbable  in  its  foundation,  but 
probable  enough  in  its  structure,  and  designed  to 
teach  a  great  truth.  The  fables  of  Phaedrus,  of 
ZEsop,  and  others,  all  suppose  things  that  we  know 
never  occur  —  birds  and  beasts  speaking  and  decid- 
ing. The  fable,  therefore,  is  more  of  a  human  and 
a  worldly  vehicle,  of  great  practical  good  sense. 
But  the  parable  is  historically  most  probable,  though 
literally   not   true,    and   made,   because    historically 


52  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

probable,  the  vehicle  of  some  precious,  spiritual,  and 
instructive  truth.  The  allegory  is  a  thing  totally  dis- 
tinct from  both.  For  instance,  Bunyan's  "  Pilgrim's 
Progress  "  is  an  allegory ;  that  is,  certain  virtues  and 
vices,  and  abstract  moral  things,  are  personated,  or 
represented  as  incarnate,  and  regarded  as  speaking 
to  each  other,  and  thereby  inculcating  in  the  reader 
great  moral  and  instructive  truths.  We  have  from 
the  lips  of  Jesus,  not  allegories,  except  in  the 
slightest  degree,  not  fables  at  all,  but  frequently 
those  beautiful  parables  that  are  the  pedestals  of 
grand  truths,  and  which,  the  more  they  are  pondered 
by  us,  seem  more  and  more  to  indicate  the  wisdom 
of  Him  who  taught  them,  and  to  unfold  their  appli- 
cability to  man  in  every  age,  country,  and  century  in 
the  world's  history. 

The  parable  of  the  sower,  which  we  had  in 
Matthew,  is  here  repeated  with  some  variety.  One 
does  not  know  well  how  to  settle  the  slight  differ- 
ences, and  at  the  same  time  admit  the  substantial 
concord  between  the  conversations  of  Jesus,  as 
recorded  by  different  evangelists.  It  seems  that  he 
spoke  probably  in  Syriac,  the  language  of  the 
country,  and  that  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke,  and  John, 
gave  as  their  memories  recollected,  guided  and 
taught  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  not  always  the  ipsissima 
verba,  the  very  words,  but  always  and  everywhere 
the  great  and  substantial  truths  which  He  taught. 
You  know  that  the  same  truth  may  be  clothed  in 
different  language,  and  the  illustrations  of  it  may  be 
varied,  and  yet  its  consistency  with  itself,  and  with 
another   narrative   given  of  it,  may  remain   unim- 


MARK    IV.  53 

peached  and  unimpaired  throughout.  The  Spirit 
inspired  equally  the  several  expressions  of  the  same 
truth. 

This  version  of  the  parable  slightly  differs,  in  some 
of  the  details,  from  Matthew's  ;  but  those  deviations 
teach  us  that  the  evangelists  did  not  copy  from  each 
other.  "We  know,  that  if  four  persons  witness  a 
transaction,  each  will  be  struck  most  forcibly  by  a 
different  part  of  it,  and  in  giving  a  narration  of  it, 
each  will  unfold  most  fully  that  part  of  it  which 
most  impressed  itself  upon  his  mind.  And  you  will 
find  also  that  people's  education,  business,  station 
in  life,  and  habits  of  thought,  will  all  very  much  give 
tone,  shape,  peculiarity,  and  distinctness,  to  their 
respective  narratives  of  any  particular  event.  Mat- 
thew was  a  publican,  Luke  was  a  learned  physician, 
John  was  an  illiterate  Hebrew,  and  Mark  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  a  more  learned  man.  Each, 
therefore,  gives  a  varied  verbal  narrative  of  the  same 
great  transaction ;  but  all  were  guided  and  inspired 
by  the  overruling  Spirit  to  record,  in  all  their  fulness, 
the  wonderful  words  of  Him  who  spake  as  never 
man  spake. 

In  this  parable  we  are  told  that  a  sower  —  in  this 
case  the  Lord  of  glory  —  went  out  to  sow.  He  has 
under  seedsmen,  but  He  himself  is  the  great  primary 
Sower.  He  sows  in  his  providence,  by  his  grace, 
from  his  Word,  and  in  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel. 
And  it  came  to  pass,  apparently,  as  the  world  would 
say,  accidentally,  but  as  the  necessary  and  natural 
result,  that  "  as  he  sowed,  some  fell  by  the  way-side, 
and  the  fowls  of  the  air  came  and  devoured  it  up." 
5* 


54  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

The  German  Rationalists,  who  consist  of  a  class  of 
men  who  read  the  Bible  as  Zoilus  of  old  read 
Homer,  not  to  be  benefited  by  its  lessons,  but  to  find 
out  flaws  in  it,  —  and  when  a  person  sets  to  work  to 
find  faults  where  there  are  none,  his  oblique  eye  will 
make  them  for  itself,  —  have  said,  that  no  sower 
upon  earth  would  have  been  so  foolish  as  to  sow 
seeds  by  the  way-side,  or  amongst  thorns,  and  that 
therefore  we  cannot  suppose  this  to  be  a  just  parable. 
My  answer  is,  that  the  parable  is  that  of  a  sower, 
not  of  an  economist,  —  the  idea  of  economy  has 
nothing  to  do  with  it  —  that  idea  is  .illustrated  with 
great  truth  in  other  parts  of  the  sacred  volume.  The 
parable  here  is  that  of  a  sower,  who  flings  the  seed 
upon  an  earth  that  once  was  made  to  bear  it,  but 
that  now,  not  by  the  sower's  fault,  but  by  the 
people's  sin,  has  barren  as  well  as  prolific  parts ;  and 
going  forth  in  his  capacity  purely  as  a  sower  —  in  no 
respect  as  an  economist  —  going  forth  to  sow  with- 
out thinking  of  the  different  soils  in  which  he  was  to 
sow  —  the  result  was,  that  some  of  the  seed  fell  by 
the  way-side,  and  of  course,  the  way-side  being  hard, 
the  seed  lay  upon  the  surface,  and  the  fowls  ate  it. 
"  And  some  fell  on  stony  ground,  where  it  had  not 
much  earth ; "  and  the  consequence  was,  that  a  great 
deal  of  moisture,  and  a  very  little  soil,  gave  a  rapid 
and  precocious  growth,  which  was  destructive  to  its 
ultimate  usefulness.  "  And  some  fell  among  thorns, 
and  the  thorns  grew  up  and  choked  it ; "  for  in  this 
fallen  world  weeds  grow  faster  than  wheat,  and 
wicked  things  prosper  more,  unfortunately  we  may 
say,  than  holy,  pure,  and  just  things ;  and  the  result 


MARK     IV.  55 

was,  that  the  nettles,  thorns,  and  thistles,  over- 
shadowed and  choked  the  good  seed.  But  "  other 
fell  on  good  ground,"  and  yielded  much  fruit. 

Then  we  have  the  explanation  of  it  by  our  blessed 
Lord;  but  he  says  that  he  gave  it  not  then  to  all. 
It  seems  strange  to  you  that  he  should  say,  "  Unto 
you  it  is  given  to  know  the  mystery  of  the  kingdom 
of  God;  but  unto  them  that  are  without  all  these 
things  are  done  in  parables."  But  the  word 
"mystery,"  as  used  in  the  Bible,  does  not  mean 
an  incomprehensible  truth,  but  something  that  was 
once  hid,  and  now  is  made  known.  For  instance, 
"  Great  is  the  mystery  of  godliness ;  God  manifest 
in  the  flesh."  To  the  ancient  Jew  it  was  a  dark  and 
impenetrable  mystery,  but  to  us  it  is  now  clearly  and 
plainly  revealed.  Again,  it  is  called  a  mystery  that 
the  Gentiles  should  be  admitted  into  brotherhood 
with  the  Jews.  That  was  to  the  Jew  an  unimagin- 
able thing  —  he  could  not  conceive  it  possible  —  but 
now,  we  are  told,  it  is  manifest,  and  Gentile  and 
Jew  are  in  fellowship,  and  this  "mystery  is  therefore 
revealed.  Now,  says  our  Lord,  these  parables  are 
mysteries ;  these  truths  that  I  am  now  teaching  you 
were  once  unintelligible  to  you  as  to  the  multitude 
without;  but  they  are  now  intelligible  to  you,  the 
inner  circle  I  am  at  present  instructing,  whilst  they 
are  unintelligible  to  the  outer  circle,  or  the  scribes 
and  Pharisees,  and  the  multitudes  about  them.  You 
say,  Why  should  this  be  ?  I  answer,  that  on  the 
supposition  that  the  facts  of  the  life  of  Jesus  were 
to  be  what  they  actually  have  been,  it  was  necessary 
that   some  of  the    greatest   truths   that   he   taught 


56  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

should  be  temporarily  sealed  to  the  rulers  of  the 
earth,  else  they  would  have  precipitated  to  a  crisis, 
that  which  it  needed  otherwise  years  to  mature. 
Christ  did  not  reveal  to  all  who  heard  him  the  truths 
of  his  kingdom ;  but  when  Pentecost  came  they 
were  fully  made  known.  If  He  was  to  be  spared, 
except  by  a  special  manifestation  of  Omnipotence, 
in  Judea  for  three  years,  teaching  and  preparing  his 
apostles  to  preach  and  suffer,  it  was  necessary  that 
all  should  not  know  what  he  taught,  but  that  to  a 
chosen  band  the  great  doctrines  of  his  gospel  should 
be  clearly  indicated,  and  to  the  rest  whenever  those 
doctrines  should  be  committed  to  paper,  or  placed  in 
a  permanent  shape  for  all.  And  this  quotation  from 
Isaiah,  "  That  seeing  they  may  see,  and  not  perceive ; 
that  hearing  they  may  hear,  and  not  understand ;  lest 
at  any  time  they  should  be  converted,  and  their  sins 
should  be  forgiven  them  ; "  does  not  mean  that  it  is 
done  in  order  to  harden  men,  but  that  this  will  be 
the  result  of  it.  And  here  we  notice  a  distinction 
between  Matthew  and  Mark,  showing  that  the 
former  wrote  for  the  Jews,  and  the  latter  for  the 
Gentiles.  Matthew  always,  in  quoting  a  prophecy, 
says,  "  That  it  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken 
by  the  prophet  ;  "  but  Mark,  except  in  the  very 
beginning  of  his  Gospel,  frequently  merely  gives  the 
result  that  took  place,  without  alluding  to  it  as  the 
fulfilment  of  a  prophecy. 

Our  Lord  then  explains  the  beautiful  parable.  It 
needs  no  explanation  to  us.  It  was  a  mystery  to 
the  Pharisee,  but  it  is  now  no  mystery  to  the  hum- 
blest and  most  illiterate  Christian.     First,  we  have 


MARK     IV.  57 

in  every  congregation  a  class  who  may  be  called 
way-side  hearers.  Their  hearts  are  so  hard,  that 
truths  scattered  upon  them  rebound.  We  have  next 
a  class  that  may  be  called  the  stony-ground  hearers. 
They  are  delighted  with  the  sermon  they  have  heard ; 
they  think  it  very  beautiful,  very  eloquent,  very 
instructive ;  they  are  charmed  with  it,  and  determine 
to  come  and  hear  that  preacher  again ;  but  the  seed 
has  no  real  hold  of  the  soil  of  the  heart ;  the  impres- 
sion made  wastes  away,  or  is  worn  down  by  the 
thought  of  this  present  world,  and  they  come  again 
no  more.  The  third  class  are  they  who  hear  the 
Word,  rejoice  in  it,  and  take  a  step  further ;  but  they 
are  so  overwhelmed  with  the  cares,  thoughts,  and 
anxieties  of  this  present  world,  and  they  are  so 
misled  and  deceived  by  the  treacherous  sophisms 
called  "  the  deceitfulness  of  riches,"  and  the  love  of 
other  things  —  ambition,  vainglory,  power  —  and 
these  things  occupy  so  large  a  space  in  their  hearts, 
that  there  is  no  time  left  for  the  seed  to  ripen  and 
mature  itself  unto  the  harvest.  And  then,  lastly, 
there  are  the  good-ground  hearers,  —  good,  not  by 
nature,  for  if  there  be  any  difference  between  the 
soils,  the  difference  is  not  the  creature's  doing,  but 
the  Regenerator's  grace.  And  then,  the  good  soil 
first  hears  the  Word.  It  is  necessary  to  hear ;  and 
how  shall  they  hear  without  a  preacher  ?  But 
secondly,  they  receive  it,  that  is,  hold  it  fast,  cordially 
embrace  it.  And  thirdly,  they  bring  forth  much 
fruit  —  different  degrees  of  it  —  but  in  every  case 
fruit.  Thus  we  have  four  classes,  —  the  second 
better  than  the  first,  the  third  better  than  the  second, 


58  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

but  the  last  the  best  of  all  — the  soil  that  we  should 
pray  for,  the  blessing  that  we  should  covet. 

Our  Lord  then  gives  them  another  parable,  which 
is  drawn  very  much  from  the  same  figure ;  and  also 
he  illustrates  "  the  kingdom  of  God,"  that  is,  the  dis- 
pensation of  the  gospel,  by  a  grain  of  mustard-seed, 
which,  I  believe,  in  Eastern  countries,  though  in 
itself  a  small  seed,  grows  to  a  greater  size  than 
other  herbs  of  the  same  species  or  genus,  and 
becomes  a  shelter  for  the  birds  of  the  air.  In  the 
parable  of  the  sower,  you  have  the  inner  develop- 
ment of  the  gospel ;  in  the  parable  of  the  imustard- 
seed,  you  have  its  outer  development  and  expan- 
sion;  in  the  one  life;  in  the  other,  the  forming  of 
a  shelter  and  a  shadow  for  all  that  seek  to  it.  And 
then  he  explained  all  things  to  the  disciples  when 
he  found  them  alone. 

We  then  read  at  the  close  of  the  chapter  of  his 
going  into  a  ship,  and  being  weary,  for  he  was  the 
Man  of  sorrows.  It  is  said,  that  he  slept  on  a  pil- 
low at  the  hinder  part  of  the  ship,  and  a  great  storm 
arose.  Down  the  mountain  gorges  around  the  Sea 
of  Galilee,  as  you  know  is  the  case  with  our  English 
lakes,  or  Scottish  lochs,  an  unexpected  gale  will 
come,  and  cause  a  storm,  in  which  the  small  boat 
on  the  lake  or  loch  is  liable  to  be  lost.  Well,  an 
unexpected  storm  came,  and  Jesus  was  asleep. 
Jonah  once  slept  in  a  ship,  but  that  was  the 
opiate  of  crime ;  Jesus  slept  in  the  ship,  but  that 
was  the  calm  of  perfect  and  unbroken  innocence. 
And  the  disciples  came  to  him  alarmed,  distrustful, 
fearing,    and   they  said,    "  Master,    carest   thou    not 


MARK    IV.  59 

that  we  perish?  "  If  they  had  said,  "Lord,  lull  the 
wind,"  that  woujd  not  have  been  such  a  breach  of 
the  evidence  of  faith  ;  but  the  expression  was,  "  Lord, 
we  fear  that  thou  art  not  what  we  thought,  for  it 
seems  as  if  thou  caredst  not  that  we  perish." 

Then  Jesus  arose ;  and  what  majesty  is  here  !  He 
rebuked  the  wind  and  sea.  Creation's  Sealord,  and 
creation's  Landlord,  was  there  ;  and  the  winds  and 
waves  recognized  the  voice  that  said,  "  Let  them 
be  ; "  and  they  that  became  being  at  his  bidding, 
now  became  calm  when  he  so  willed  it.  And  this 
He  did,  not  as  a  mere  fact,  but  as  an  earnest  of 
that  day  when  nature  shall  be  restored  to  her  pristine 
peace,  order,  and  harmony;  when  the  groans  and 
travails  of  creation  shall  cease,  and  that  which  is 
nature's  normal  condition  —  a  condition  of  quiet  and 
calm — shall  be  nature's  enjoyment  again;  and  we 
shall  not  only  recognize  Him  as  One  who  rebukes 
the  winds  and  waves,  and  both  obeying  him,  but  we 
shall  recognize  Him  who  has  made  and  remade  the 
sea  and  the  dry  land,  and  restored  all  nature  by  a 
regenesis  more  glorious  than  its  first  genesis,  to  that 
order,  beauty,  and  harmony  which  it  lost  by  sin.  I 
believe  that  this  earth  is  not  to  be  given  up  to  Satan. 
It  is  a  deranged  world ;  it  is  grievously  disturbed ; 
there  is  fever  in  its  organization,  because  sin  has 
smitten  it;  but  the  great  Lord  who  made  it  will 
come  to  it  again,  and  he  will  expunge  from  it  all  its 
ills,  its  poison,  and  its  fever,  and  make  this  orb,  which 
has  so  many  magnificent  traces  of  its  primeval  gran- 
deur, one  of  the  brightest  and  most  beautiful  in  the 
whole   celestial   firmament,  reflecting,   not    only   as 


60  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

other  orbs  do,  the  God  who  made  it,  but  the  Christ 
that  also  redeemed  it.  * 

Of  these  outer  acts  they  that  saw  said,  "  "What 
manner  of  man  is  this,  that  even  the  wind  and  the 
sea  obey  him  ? "  We  may  exclaim  of  an  inner 
work,  "  What  manner  of  man  is  this,  that  the  winds 
of  human  prejudice  and  the  waves  of  human  pas- 
sion obey  him  ?  " 


CHAPTER   IV.   26-29. 

THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD — THE  SOWER  —  THE  SEED — THE  GROWTH 
—  THE   HARVEST. 

Let  me  explain  what  appears  to  be  conveyed  by 
the  phrase,  "  the  kingdom  of  God,"  as  applied  in 
this  and  other  passages  to  the  dispensation  of  the 
Gospel. 

It  is  evidently  used  by  our  Lord  to  designate  the 
outward  and  visible  church ;  that  is,  the  church 
composed  of  tares  and  of  wheat,  of  good  seed  that 
ripens  and  seed  that  is  decayed,  of  good  fishes  and 
of  bad.  It  is  the  company  of  the  baptized,  the 
visible  church,  as  it  is  called,  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ. 

In  all  ages  it  has  been  a  mingled  body ;  there  is 
no  such  fact  upon  earth  as  a  pure,  perfect,  and  holy 
church.  There  are  saints  of  God  in  the  worst ; 
there  are  sinners  and  wicked  ones  in  the  best ;  and 
every  attempt  that  has  been  made  —  such  is  the 
instructive  lesson  of  history  —  to  create  a  new 
church,  on  the  supposition  that  it  would  be  a  pure 
one,  has  issued  only  in  the  creation  of  another  and 
frequently  a  worse. 

The  truth  is,  that  zealous  men  that  separate  from 
a  partially  corrupt  church,  in  the  hope  that  they  will 
6 


62  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

be  able  to  constitute  a  pure  one,  have  found  that 
they  have  simply  changed  their  place  from  an  acre 
that  brought  forth  tares  and  wheat,  to  another  that 
brought  forth  tares  and  wheat  still.  The  way  to 
get  the  whole  church  of  Christ  made  purer,  the  way 
to  raise  the  temperature  of  the  whole  body,  is  for 
each  individual  to  get  his  own  heart  under  the 
sanctifying  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  God ;  and 
thus,  and  by  this  process  only,  will  the  church  of 
Christ  be  made  purer. 

Do  not  expect  on  earth  a  pure  visible  church  till 
the  Lord  come.  I  do  not  think  that  it  is  God's  ordi- 
nation that  there  should  be  in  this  dispensation  a 
pure  one.  The  tares  and  the  wheat  remain  mingled 
together  even  to  the  end ;  and  when  some  good  but 
indiscreet  men  asked  leave  to  root  up  the  tares,  what 
do  we  find  was  the  answer  of  our  blessed  Lord  ?  — 
"  Do  not  do  so,  lest  you  root  up  the  wheat  also." 
Better  that  twenty  tares  should  grow  in  the  field 
ecclesiastical,  than  that  one  precious  wheat  stalk 
should  be  injured  by  their  removal.  What  we  need 
is  not  change  of  place,  but  change  of  individual 
character.  The  old  machinery  is  good  enough  if 
we  can  only  get  good  men  to  use  it.  We  do  not 
want  to  break  up  the  machinery  that  we  happen  in 
God's  providence  to  be  associated  with,  but  to 
improve  and  elevate  it  by  improving,  elevating,  and 
sanctifying,  by  the  grace  of  God,  our  own  individual 
hearts. 

If  we  more  and  more  prayed  that  the  Holy  Spirit 
of  God  would  change  the  hearts  of  them  that  are 
in  the  church,  whatever  section  of  the  church  it  may 


MARK    IV.  63 

be ;  and  became  less  and  less  menders  of  churches, 
or  church  tinkers ;  I  am  quite  sure  we  should  more 
substantially  and  rapidly  contribute  to  that  blessed 
and  glorious  result,  when  the  church  will  attain  its 
highest  possible  purity  on  earth  prior  to  the  advent 
of  Him  whose  prerogative  alone  it  is  to  separate 
the  tares  from  the  wheat,  and  take  the  wheat  into 
his  own  barns. 

But  whilst  the  phrase,  "  the  kingdom  of  God,"  is 
thus  applied  to  the  visible  church,  it  is  also  denned 
by  certain  moral  characteristics;  it  is  not  only  a 
company  of  subjects  baptized,  but  it  is  also  a  power 
or  an  influence  in  the  individual  heart.  The  apostle 
defines  it  when  he  says,  "  The  kingdom  of  God  is 
not  meat  nor  drink,"  that  is,  it  is  not  a  question  of 
ecclesiastical,  or  sectarian,  or  sacramental,  or  any 
other  ceremony  ;  but  it  is  "  righteousness,  and  peace, 
and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost."  While,  therefore,  the 
company  of  the  baptized  is  a  mixed  body,  the  king- 
dom of  God,  as  an  influence  on  the  individual  heart, 
is  an  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Spirit  moulding  every 
thought,  affection,  and  feeling  to  the  likeness  of 
Christ,  till  the  individual  believer,  upon  earth,  reflects 
upon  the  world  the  image  and  perfection  of  Him 
who  translated  him  from  darkness  into  his  own  mar- 
vellous light. 

Now,  in  this  parable  we  have  a  view,  I  think,  of 
the  progress  in  individual  hearts,  such  as  is  not 
given  in  the  parable  of  the  sower  that  immediately 
precedes  it. 

In  studying  this  parable,  let  us  notice  that  the  soil 
in  which  the  seed  is  cast  is  the  human  heart. 


64  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

In  some  cases  the  soil,  or  that  heart,  is  so  hard 
that  when  the  sower  drops  a  handful  of  seeds  upon 
it  the  seeds  rebound  and  are  scattered  in  the  air,  or 
they  remain  upon  the  hard  surface  of  the  heart — 
hardened  by  the  traffic  of  Mammon  and  the  feet  of 
this  world's  cares  —  and  remain  till  picked  up  by  the 
birds  of  heaven ;  and  so  the  seed  does  not  germi- 
nate nor  grow  up  into  a  golden  harvest. 

But  this  is  not  the  only  phase  of  the  human 
heart;  it  is  not  only  hardened,  and  so  passively 
rejects  the  seed,  but  it  puts  forth  also  active  resist- 
ance to  it.  The  human  heart  is  not  a  dead  material, 
but  an  active  and  vital  power;  and  as  such  it  is 
denned  by  an  apostle  himself  to  be  "  enmity  to  God." 
It  is  a  very  awful  thing  that  the  heart  should  hate 
whatsoever  things  are  pure,  and  just,  and  honest, 
and  lovely,  and  of  good  report.  If  your  heart  and 
my  heart  do  not  hate  all  that  is  holy,  you  have  not 
Adam  the  First  to  thank,  but  Adam  the  Second, 
who  has  made  you  to  differ. 

But  not  only  is  the  heart  thus  actively  opposed 
to  the  entry  in  of  what  is  good,  but  it  has  a  worse 
peculiarity — it  is  actively  receptive  of  what  is  posi- 
tively evil.  Let  the  good  seeds  be  sown  in  the 
natural  heart,  and  it  not  only  is  hardened  that  it 
will  not  receive  them,  but  it  wilfully  repels  them ; 
and  on  the  other  hand,  let  the  seed  consist  of  that 
of  weeds  or  tares,  and  it  enthusiastically  receives 
them.  Your  heart  and  my  heart  give  by  nature 
hospitality  to  evil;  a  cold  and  freezing  admission 
to  the  good.  Not  only  have  we  enmity  within 
us  to  what  is  good,  but  we   are  so  debased  and 


MARK    IV.  65 

fallen  by  nature  that  we  welcome  what  is  evil  as 
that  which  is  congenial  to  ourselves  and  dearest  to 
the  passions  and  prejudices  of  our  hearts. 

Having  looked,  then,  at  the  soil,  let  me  observe 
next  the  sower.  The  sower,  in  the  first  parable,  is 
the  Lord  himself.  The  sower,  it  would  seem,  in  this 
parable  is  the  under  seedsman,  or  sower  sent  forth 
by  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

In  looking  at  the  minister  of  the  Gospel  as  the 
sower  of  the  good  seed,  I  single  out  him,  not  as  if 
he  alone  sowed ;  for  there  is  not  a  conversation  that 
you  hold  in  a  railway  carriage,  nor  a  word  that  you 
utter  in  the  streets,  nor  a  criticism  that  you  pass 
upon  a  friend,  that  is  not  a  seed  of  some  sort ;  and 
a  seed  that  will  germinate  somewhere  and  meet  you 
again  at  the  great  harvest,  when  the  angels  are  the 
reapers  and  the  tares  are  burned. 

All  persons  are,  therefore,  sowers;  but  primarily 
and  chiefly  and  officially,  the  ministers  of  the  Gos- 
pel. 

Now,  notice  what  they  are  to  sow.  It  is  seed, 
and  that  seed  the  minister  does  not  create,  he  only 
collects. 

The  sower  that  would  sow  what  he  himself  had 
formed  by  his  own  mechanical  or  chemical  inge- 
nuity, would  find  very  little  result  in  the  harvest; 
but  the  sower  sent  forth  by  the  great  Master  of  all 
gathers  from  the  granary  of  Scripture  the  seeds  that 
are  laid  there,  and  spreads  them  over  all  souls,  seek- 
ing for  a  blessing  upon  the  work  of  his  hands,  and 
hoping  by  the  grace  of  God  for  a  bounteous  harvest- 
home  ;  which  will  be  more  than  a  recompense  for  all 
6* 


66  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

his  toils.  The  minister  must  sow  seeds ;  the  seeds 
of  the  word. 

If  a  farmer  were  to  sow  his  field  with  the  most 
precious  pearls  from  the  depths  of  the  sea,  or  with 
the  most  beautiful  gems  from  the  East  or  from  the 
West,  they  would  sparlde  in  setting  and  in  rising 
suns,  but  they  would  never  grow  into  a  harvest  that 
would  feed  mankind;  and  if  the  minister  of  the 
Gospel  should  speak  to  you  in  figures  so  beautiful 
that  you  will  be  charmed,  or  in  strains  of  rhetoric  so 
impressive  that  you  shall  go  away  like  Ezekiel's 
hearers,  having  listened  to  him  as  to  one  who  plays 
beautifully  upon  an  instrument,  yet  no  good  will  be 
done.  Figures  of  speech,  elegant  metaphors,  pretty 
conceits,  preached  from  the  pulpit,  are  just  as  objec- 
tionable as  chaff  sown  by  the  farmer  in  spring,  with 
the  foolish  hope  that  it  will  grow  up  into  a  great 
and  blessed  harvest. 

If  the  minister  sow  his  sparkling  figures  over  all 
the  souls  subjected  to  his  influence,  the  result  will 
be,  that  thousands  will  admire,  but  none  will  be 
profited ;  on  the  contrary,  many  will  pine  and  perish 
for  want  of  bread. 

Again,  when  the  minister  receives  the  seed,  it 
must  not  only  be  true  seed,  but  it  must  be  sown. 
We  have  no  evidence  that  the  seed  sows  itself. 
There  are  certainly  some  seeds  —  the  seeds,  I  believe, 
of  some  kinds  of  thistles — that  have  got  small  wings 
of  down,  and  are  wafted  by  the  winds,  and  thus 
sown,  if  I  may  so  call  it,  by  themselves ;  but  the 
law  of  most  seeds  is  that  they  must  be  taken  from 
the  granary,  scattered  by  the  industrious  hand,  and 


MARK    IV.  67 

committed  to  the  prolific  soil,  in  order  to  grow  up 
into  a  harvest.  Left  in  the  granary  the  seed  will 
decay ;  but  cast  into  the  congenial  soil  it  will  bear 
much  fruit.     The  minister,  therefore,  must  sow  it. 

The  Gospel,  in  like  manner,  must  be  preached. 
The  winds  do  not  chant  it :  the  stars  do  not  write 
it:  the  waves  of  the  sea  do  not  chime. it.  God  has 
appointed  men  to  preach,  in  order  that  the  people 
may  hear;  he  has  sent  forth  seedsmen  to  sow,  in 
order  that  the  seed  may  bring  forth  fruit;  in  some 
thirty,  in  some  sixty,  and  in  some  one  hundred-fold. 
The  ministry  is  thus  not  a  sinecure,  but  a  work: 
they  are  laborers  with  Christ,  fellow-workmen  with 
him ;  they  have  seeds  to  sow,  and  of  all  laborers 
they  ought  to  be  the  most  diligent;  because  upon 
their  toils  depend  results  that  are  measured  only  by 
immensity,  and  limited  only  by  eternity. 

When  the  farmer  sows,  there  are  some  seasons 
that  are  more  suitable  for  sowing  than  others;  we 
all  know  that  the  seed  sown  at  one  month  in  the 
year  will  grow  up  only  a  stunted  or  worthless  prod- 
uct; whereas,  sown  at  the  time  indicated  by  its 
nature,  in  the  providence  of  God,  it  will  grow  up  a 
mature  and  ripe  fruit.  There  are  seasons  in  every 
man's  individual  life,  seasons  in  national  life,  sea- 
sons in  the  world's  life,  when  the  seed  dropped  is 
like  a  word  spoken  in  season ;  behold,  how  good 
and  precious  it  is !  Miss  the  season  that  is  best  for 
sowing,  and  it  is  like  the  husbandman  having  lost 
the  spring,  like  the  sailor  having  missed  the  tide, 
like  an  apprentice  having  played  when  he  should 
have  toiled,  like  a  soldier  having  studied  politics 
instead  of  the  articles  of  war. 


68  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

What  are  some  of  these  seasons  ? 

One  season  is,  that  of  severe  and  sorrowful 
bereavement.  It  is  always  found  that  the  human 
heart  is  most  receptive  of  the  seeds  of  everlasting 
truth,  when  it  has  been  saturated  by  sorrow,  and 
softened  by  its  influence,  as  if  by  the  dews  of 
heaven.  And  when  the  good  seed — the  word  of 
everlasting  truth — can  be  cast  into  the  heart  over 
which  the  wave  of  affliction  has  swept,  that  heart, 
like  the  earth  left  by  the  receding  waters  of  the 
Nile,  receives  the  good  seed  and  becomes  prolific  of 
blessed  and  of  more  than  rewarding  harvests. 

Another  season,  too,  when  the  seed  may  be  sown 
with  the  greatest  hope,  is  the  season  of  youth.  In 
youth  the  heart  is  most  soft,  most  susceptible ;  the 
seed  cast  into  it  strikes  deepest,  remains  longest, 
and  grows  most  luxuriantly  to  the  harvest.  Let 
me,  therefore,  say  to  the  young,  "  Remember  thy 
Creator  in  the  days  of  thy  youth."  Let  me  ask  the 
young  to  place  themselves,  whenever  they  have  the 
opportunity,  under  the  influence  of  divine  truth. 
The  lessons  you  have  received  in  youth  will  grow 
up  your  comfort  and  your  joy  in  the  wintry  days  of 
old  age,  and  be  to  you  the  seeds  of  a  harvest  glo- 
rious as  that  described  by  our  blessed  Lord,  when 
the  tares  are  cast  out  from  the  field,  and  the  ripened 
wheat  is  gathered  by  himself  into  his  own  great 
barns. 

I  do  not  say  that,  if  these  seasons  are  lost,  there 
will  never  be  another  opportunity  equally  good ;  but 
I  do  say  that  these  seasons  are  so  precious,  that  you 
cannot  too  earnestly  or  too  prayerfully  avail  your- 


MARK    IV.  69 

selves  of  them.  Wherever  there  is  a  heart  that 
beats,  I  must  however  add,  there  is  a  soil  in  which 
the  seed  may  be  cast ;  and  as  long  as  there  is  life, 
so  long  there  may  be  prayer,  and  so  long  there  is 
hope. 

Let  me  notice  again,  that  when  the  sower  has 
cast  the  seed  into  the  soil,  in  the  beautiful  language 
of  the  parable  I  have  selected  as  my  text,  he  can  do 
nothing  more.  All  that  he  does  is  to  rise  in  the 
morning,  and  retire  to  rest  at  night ;  —  "he  may 
sleep  and  rise  night  and  day,  but  the  seed  springeth 
up  he  knoweth  not  how."  In  other  words,  the  hus- 
bandman casts  his  seed  into  the  soil  in  spring:  he 
may  watch  it  out  of  curiosity,  or  because  he  has  an 
interest  in  it;  but  he  is  not  the  cause  of  the  sun- 
shine and  of  the  fertilizing  dew;  he  cannot  com- 
mand the  clouds  to  pour  down  their  treasures;  he 
cannot  give  to  the  earth  the  fertility  it  has  not.  It 
is  in  this  case,  as  in  the  higher  and  the  holier  one, — 
"  the  wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth,  and  thou  near- 
est the  sound  thereof,  but  canst  not  tell  whence  it 
cometh,  and  whither  it  goeth:  so  is  every  one  that 
is  born  of  the  Spirit." 

We  see  from  this,  too,  that  we  must  expect,  in 
sowing  the  seed,  the  celestial  blessing,  in  order  that 
our  terrestrial  toils  may  be  crowned  with  success. 
In  vain  does  the  husbandman  sow  if  there  be  no 
sunshine  and  no  rains,  and  in  vain  are  there  sunshine 
and  rains  if  the  husbandman  does  not  sow.  God 
has  so  knit  together  the  terrestrial  toil,  or  use  of 
means,  and  the  celestial  blessing  that  makes  those 
means  efficacious,  that  it  is  ours  patiently  to  use 


70  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

the  means,  that  is,  to  sow  the  seeds,  and  prayerfully 
to  look  for  mist  and  clouds  and  sunshine  to  Him 
that  commands  a  blessing  and  makes  the  reaper  to 
tread  upon  the  skirts  of  the  sower. 

And  again,  although  the  sower  does  not  give 
virtue  to  the  seed,  or  fertility  to  the  soil,  yet  he  is 
nevertheless  not  an  unconcerned  spectator.  The 
language  of  the  passage  is,  that  he  "  rises  up  and 
watches,"  that  is,  that  he  feels  a  deep  interest  in  it; 
and  that  minister  of  the  Gospel  who  can  scatter 
over  those  living  pulsating  hearts  that  are  around 
him  those  great  truths  that  will  either  be  their  ruin 
or  their  restoration,  and  feels  no  anxiety  that  the 
effect  should  be  the  best  and  noblest  and  the  most 
blessed,  has  no  sympathy  with  the  great  Master. 
But  whilst  we  may  sympathize  with  the  progress 
of  the  work,  whilst  we  may  feel  anxious  that  every 
section  of  the  field  should  prosper,  we  can  make 
no  contribution  to  it,  we  are  helpless  in  the  higher 
processes :  we  can  only  wait  and  watch  and  pray 
that  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  will  command  a  bless- 
ing that  will  make  the  seed  grow  up  and  bear  fruit, 
some  thirty,  some  sixty,  and  some  one  hundred-fold. 

It  has  been  carefully  calculated,  that  of  all  the 
seed  that  is  sown  on  the  earth,  two  fifths  are  used, 
partly  to  feed  the  worms  of  the  earth,  partly  to  feed 
the  birds  of  the  air,  and  some  parts  of  it  decay  and 
fail  to  germinate  at  all.  But  so  beautifully  has  God 
arranged  it,  that  if  man  were  to  say  —  "  Since  two 
fifths  of  the  seed  that  I  scatter  in  my  field  are  dissi- 
pated, I  will  in  future  only  sow  the  remaining  three 
fifths,"  the  result  of  the  harvest  would  be  that  he 


MARK    IV.  71 

would  not  starve  the  dumb  creation,  but  very  soon 
be  starved  himself.  It  is  God's  great  law  that  man 
shall  be  the  almoner  of  the  creation,  as  it  was  God's 
great  law  at  first  that  man  should  be  the  priest  of  all 
living  happy  things.  And  we  find  the  same  truth  in 
the  ministry  of  the  Gospel.  The  minister  preaches 
truths  that  are  fitted  to  electrify  the  world  ;  he 
scatters  seed  that  may  benefit  the  nations ;  and  the 
result  is  only  that  one  here  and  one  there  is  the  good 
soil  that  receives  the  seed  and  brings  forth  fruit 
accordingly.  But  is  the  rest  of  the  seed  lost  ?  No  ; 
alas  !  it  proves  to  some  the  savor  of  death  :  it  is 
going  forth  in  its  message  of  greatness,  or  of  good- 
ness, to  others;  and  though  he  cannot  trace  the 
effects  of  all  that  he  says,  if  he  speak  God's  truth  in 
God's  name,  and  with  God's  Holy  Spirit,  it  is  as 
certain  as  that  suns  shall  set  and  rise,  that  never  a 
word  shall  return  to  God  void. 

And  again,  we  are  often  prone  to  estimate  the 
effects  of  preaching  by  instantaneous  or  non-instan- 
taneous results.  I  believe  we  ought  not  to  do  so. 
It  is  not  the  law  in  nature  that  the  reaper  follows  the 
sower,  and  that  the  autumn  bursts  upon  the  spring. 
"We  find  the  interval  of  the  ripening  summer 
between  the  seed  that  is  sown  and  the  fruits  that  are 
gathered.  And  if  this  be  so  in  God's  natural  world, 
we  may  depend  upon  it  there  is  some  analogy 
between  this  and  God's  spiritual  world.  I  am  not 
strongly  disposed  to  believe  in  instantaneous  conver- 
sions. What  are  called  so  are  really  the  results  of 
long  hidden  processes.  The  seed  germinates,  and 
we   think   it   is   instantaneous,  whilst  it  is  really  a 


72  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

harvest  very  remote  from  the  spring  in  which  the 
seed  was  sown.  We  are  therefore  not  to  suppose 
that  no  good  is  done  by  a  sermon,  because  its  echo 
does  not  come  from  every  pew.  The  seed  may  lie 
hidden,  may  be  choked,  may  be  buried,  but  it  has 
life,  and  it  will  spring  up  one  day,  and  bear  fruit 
abundantly. 

In  the  next  place,  we  see  in  this  very  beautiful 
and  suggestive  parable  the  idea  of  progress.  "  He 
should  sleep,  and  rise  night  and  day,  and  the  seed 
should  spring  and  grow  up,  he  knoweth  not  how. 
For  the  earth  bringeth  forth  fruit  of  herself ;  first  the 
blade,  then  the  ear,  after  that  the  full  corn  in  the 
ear."  This  is  not  instantaneous  result,  but  gradual 
and  progressive  development.  It  is  not  like  the 
mountain  torrents,  that  are  very  soon  swollen,  and 
very  soon  dry  up  ;  but  it  is  a  gradual  expansion, 
the  seeds  of  spring  issue  in  the  golden  ears  of 
autumn. 

There  is,  first  of  all,  says  our  Lord,  the  blade. 
And  this  reminds  me  of  a  very  important  truth. 
The  blade  is  at  first  extremely  small.  You  will  see 
it  sometimes  in  March  peeping  up  amid  the  cold 
and  freezing  snow,  and  so  much  like  a  weed,  that  if 
you  are  not  an  experienced  farmer,  you  would 
denounce  it  at  once  as  such.  And  yet  the  hopes  of 
a  nation's  bread  all  rest  upon  the  maturing  and 
ripening  of  that  green  leaf  that  grows  out  from  the 
snow,  and  seems  itself  so  little  to  promise  the 
harvests  that  are  to  follow.  Now,  my  dear  friends, 
how  suggestive  to  us  is  that  beautiful  analogy  of 
that  charity  which  beareth  all  things,  and  hopeth  all 


MARK    IV.  73 

things.  The  man  who  has  just  been  brought  to  feel 
an  interest  in  the  Gospel,  may  be  so  little  advanced, 
that  he  looks  more  like  a  weed  than  wheat,  that  he 
seems  more  of  the  world  than  out  of  it,  that  it  seems 
as  if  his  Christianity  were  so  weak  and  fragile,  that 
the  first  influence  of  frost,  or  the  first  touch  of  the 
cold  March  north-east  wind,  would  blight  and  blast 
it  for  ever.  But,  my  dear  friends,  be  careful :  do  not 
condemn  as  a  weed  him  or  her  who  may  be  a  blade 
of  true  wheat,  scarcely  distinguishable  by  you,  but 
watched  and  tended  by  Him  who  hears  the  cry  of 
the  wild  raven,  clothes  the  lily  of  the  field,  and 
brings  the  blade  of  March  into  the  full  ears  of 
August  and  September.  Do  not,  brethren,  set  down 
as  a  worldling  one  who  may  just  be  emerging  from 
the  snow  in  a  cold  and  uncongenial  climate,  and 
needing,  not  the  north-east  wind  of  a  cold  rebuke 
of  yours,  but  the  warm  atmosphere  of  affectionate 
nurture.  Take  care,  lest  in  your  attempt  to  discrimi- 
nate you  injure  the  planting  of  the  Lord.  The 
blade,  however  feeble,  however  unpromising  to  you, 
is  wheat ;  and  if  watched,  tended,  and  cared  for,  it 
will  overcome  all  the  obstructions  that  resist  it,  and 
unfold  itself  into  a  harvest  that  will  make  the  heart 
of  the  widow  to  sing  for  joy,  and  the  world  to  be 
blessed  by  its  presence.  There  is  indicated  in  this 
passage  progress.  The  blade,  however  weak,  grows 
into  wheat.  In  other  words,  if  you  are  a  true  Chris- 
tian, I  do  not  believe  that  you  ever  can  be  trans- 
formed into  the  reverse.  I  do  not  believe,  because 
the  Bible  does  not  seem  to  me  to  teach  it,  that  the 
Christian  of  to-day  may  become  the  unconverted 
7 


74  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

sceptic  of  to-morrow.  The  loudest  professor  of 
to-day  may  be  the  loudest  blasphemer  to-morrow ; 
but  wheat  cannot  be  changed  into  tares.  The  living 
seed  from  the  granary  of  God  is  from  Him,  and  it 
grows  to  Him.  If  a  man  be  born,  he  is  a  man ;  if 
he  be  born  again,  he  is  a  Christian ;  and  if  he  be 
the  shining  light,  (to  vary  the  figure  employed  in  this 
passage,)  it  will  shine  more  and  more  unto  the 
perfect  day.  The  blade  will  reach  the  ear,  and  the 
ear  the  full  corn  in  the  ear. 

We  have  again  here  the  harvest  that  follows 
alluded  to.  That  harvest  is  sometimes  reaped  partly 
on  earth,  but  it  is  sure  to  be  reaped  in  all  its  fulness 
at  the  close  of  this  present  dispensation.  And  how 
beautiful  is  harvest!  It  is  only  exceeded  by  spring. 
It  is  then  that  nature  sits  on  her  golden  sheaves,  like 
a  mother  amidst  her  rejoicing  offspring,  and  all 
nature  seems  to  lift  up  its  glad  anthem  of  praise 
unto  Him  who  is  the  Lord  of  the  spring  and  the 
Lord  of  the  harvest.  But  all  the  harvests  of  the 
earth,  when  ripest,  will  be  nothing  in  grandeur  and 
magnificence  to  that  last  harvest,  where  angels  are 
the  reapers,  and  Jesus  watches  over  all.  But  some- 
times we  see  the  harvest  even  in  this  world.  In  this 
dispensation  you  come  to  a  death-bed  —  a  Christian 
departs,  like  a  sheaf  ripe  and  fit  for  transference  into 
the  kingdom  of  heaven.  You  sometimes  see  a 
harvest  as  a  foretaste  of  the  ultimate  one,  in  a  con- 
gregation, when  after  long  lying  fallow,  scorched 
and  parched  by  the  sun,  it  comes  under  a  new  birth, 
and  basks  in  a  bright  sunshine,  and  its  very  solitary 
places   blossom   as   the    rose.      And    sometimes   it 


MARK    IV.  75 

appears  in  a  nation.  Do  you  think  that  the  living 
seeds  that  Latimer,  Ridley,  Knox,  and  Luther  sowed, 
ever  can  be  extinguished  ?  They  are  beneath  the 
green  grass  ;  they  may  be  deeply  buried  beneath  the 
everlasting  hills  ;  but  the  time  comes  when  the 
breath  of  spring  shall  come  over  them,  and  the  seeds 
that  were  watered  by  the  tears  of  weeping  eyes,  and 
softened  by  the  blood  of  warm  hearts,  shall  feel  the 
breath  and  influence  of  Him  whose  they  are  and 
from  whom  they  come,  and  a  great  nation  shall 
burst  in  a  glorious  harvest,  till  the  language  of  the 
65th  Psalm  becomes  literal,  — "  The  pastures  are 
clothed  with  flocks  ;  the  valleys  also  are  covered 
over  with  corn ;  they  shout  for  joy,  they  also  sing." 

But  the  great  and  the  ultimate  harvest  is  at  the 
end,  not  of  the  world,  as  we  call  it,  for  I  do  not 
believe  that  the  world  will  have  any,  but  at  the  end 
of  the  age,  the  present  dispensation.  Let  us  never 
forget,  in  looking  at  the  whole  of  this  parable,  that 
the  sower  is  not  always  the  reaper.  In  the  language 
of  Scripture,  "  one  soweth,  and  another  reapeth."  I 
have  often  taken  comfort  from  this.  One  preaches 
faithfully  from  year  to  year  the  everlasting  Gospel. 
You  do  not  see  (for  that  is  all  one  can  say)  that 
practical  response  to  it  which  you  have  been  led  to 
expect,  or  that  you  have  earnestly  prayed  for.  It 
may  be  so.  Then  what  is  your  conclusion  ?  That 
God  has  placed  you  simply  as  a  sower;  another 
comes  in  your  place  when  your  work  is  done,  and 
sees  whole  harvests  spring  up  in  all  their  mellowness 
and  ripeness,  and  God  has  given  him  the  position  of 
a  reaper.     The  sower's  duties  may  be  as  laborious, 


76  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

though  his  dignities  are  not  as  great.  Because  one 
sows  he  is  not  to  despair,  and  the  reaper  is  not  to 
boast;  but  both  are  to  wait  for  that  blessed  day 
when  they  shall  meet,  and  sower  and  reaper  shall 
rejoice  together. 

Let  us,  again,  recollect  that  we  know  certainly 
that  the  present  is  our  seed-time.  I  think  one  of  the 
most  awful  experiences  expressed  in  God's  holy 
Word  is  this,  —  "  The  harvest  is  past,  the  summer  is 
ended,  and  we  are  not  saved."  This  is  our  seed- 
time. Are  our  hearts  receiving  trustfully  the  living 
seed  ?  Do  we  open  our  ears  to  the  truth  ?  Is  the 
sanctuary  becoming  dearer  to  us  ?  Is  the  preaching 
of  the  Gospel  more  appreciated  by  us?  Can  we 
say  that  a  day  in  God's  courts  is  better  than  a  thou- 
sand that  we  spend  elsewhere?  Do  we  rejoice  when 
it  is  said  to  us,  "  Let  us  go  up  into  the  house  of  the 
Lord  ?  "  We  are  under  influences  that  are  harden- 
ing us  for  ruin,  or  ripening  us  for  glory :  which  are 
ye?  I  speak  as  unto  reasonable  men:  judge  ye 
what  I  say. 

Let  us,  again,  never  forget  that  there  are  two 
vitalities  upon  earth.  Evil  has  life:  good  has  life. 
The  seeds  of  evil  grow  up  into  tares:  the  seeds  of 
the  good  grow  up  into  wheat.  A  sinful  word  spoken 
at  random  may  prove  in  some  innocent  heart  a  seed 
that  grows  up  into  a  tare ;  and  the  awful  truth  of 
the  parable  is,  not  that  the  tare  is  something  separate 
from  the  man,  but  that  the  tare  and  the  man  are 
inseparably  one. 


MARK    IV.  77 


Note.  —  [26-29.]  Peculiar  to  Mark.  By  commentators  of  the 
Straussian  school,  it  is  supposed  to  be  the  same  as  the  parable  of  the 
tares,  with  the  tares  left  out.  (! !)  If  so,  a  wonderful  and  most  instruc- 
tive parable  has  arisen  out  of  the  fragments  of  the  other,  in  which  the 
idea  is  a  totally  different  one.  It  is  the  growth  of  the  once  deposited 
seed  by  the  combination  of  its  own  development  with  the  genial  power 
of  the  earth ;  all,  of  course,  under  the  creative  hand  of  God,  but  inde- 
pendent of  human  care  and  anxiety  during  this  time  of  growth. 

[28.]  No  trouble  of  ours  can  accelerate  the  growth  or  shorten  the 
stages  which  each  seed  must  pass  through.  It  is  the  mistake  of  mod- 
ern Methodism,  for  instance,  to  be  always  working  at  the  seed,  —  tak- 
ing it  up  to  see  whether  it  is  growing,  instead  of  leaving  it  to  God's 
own  good  time,  and  meanwhile  diligently  doing  God's  work  elsewhere. 
See  Stier,  vol.  iii.  p.  16. — Alford. 


CHAPTER   V. 

DEMONIAC    POSSESSION  —  SATAN    IN    THE    HERD    OF    SWINE  —  THE 

CONDUCT   OF  THE  DELIVERED   DEMONIAC SHOWING    FORTH   THE 

TRUTH  —  THE     WOMAN    TOUCHING     THE     HEM    OF    HIS    GARMENT 
—  THE   RULER  AND   HIS   DAUGHTER. 

Every  touch  of  the  pen  of  the  sacred  historian  is 
evidence  here  of  the  presence  of  Him  whom  in  the 
previous  chapter  the  winds  and  the  sea  obeyed,  and 
whom  in  this  chapter  all  the  diseases  of  fallen 
humanity,  the  worst  and  most  inveterate,  recognized 
as  the  great,  the  only,  and  the  infallible  Physician. 
The  first  sketch  or  tableau  is  exceedingly  impressive 
and  awfully  striking,  giving  on  the  one  side  a  picture 
of  the  depth  to  which  poor  humanity  may  be  drag- 
ged, and  presenting  on  the  obverse  a  picture  of  the 
power,  mercy,  and  sovereignty  of  Him  whom  all 
things  in  heaven  and  earth  and  under  the  earth 
obey. 

I  have  often  had  occasion  to  remark  upon  the  fact 
that  demoniac  possessions  seem  now  altogether  to 
have  ceased  —  that,  at  least,  we  have  no  evidence 
upon  which  we  can  depend  of  any  thing  anywhere 
approaching  to  actual  demoniac  possession  having 
recently  occurred  or  at  present  existing  upon  earth. 
It  may  be,  that  just  before  Jesus  came  Satan  had 
outstepped  his  boundaries,  and  had  intruded  beyond 


MARK    V.  79 

his  former  province,  and  lodged  himself  in  the  very 
recesses  of  the  human  soul ;  so  that  if  Jesus  had  not 
come  at  the  time  when  he  actually  came,  all  human- 
ity would  have  been  made  the  prisonhouse,  the  thrall, 
the  bondslave  of  Satan  himself.  After  our  Lord's 
ascension,  no  such  instances  occur,  and  this  relief 
may  have  occurred  at  the  time  when  he  said,  "  I  saw 
Satan  fall  from  heaven  like  lightning."  God  mani- 
fest in  the  flesh  seems  to  have  put  an  end  to  that 
peculiar  type  of  Satan's  power  called  demoniac  pos- 
sessions. Satan  still  touches  the  human  soul  at 
every  point;  he  still  intrudes  into  the  sanctuary  of 
the  heart.  Satan  stole  into  Paradise,  and  he  still 
finds  unbidden  access  to  the  regenerate  heart :  only  of 
such  a  heart  it  is  true,  "  Satan  hath  desired  to  have 
thee,  that  he  may  sift  thee  as  wheat ;  but "  —  blessed 
preparation  and  only  defence  —  the  Saviour  says,  "  I 
have  prayed  for  thee,  that  thy  faith  fail  not."  There 
is  something  very  remarkable  in  this  man  possessed 
with  the  devil.  It  seems  as  if  there  were  two  antag- 
onistic wills  —  there  is  the  will  of  the  man  when  he 
runs  to  and  worships  Jesus ;  and  there  appears  again 
the  dominant  and  more  powerful  will  of  the  devil 
that  possessed  him,  when  he  spoke  through  the 
organs  of  the  man,  and  said,  "  My  name  is  Legion ; 
for  we  are  many."  There  is  something,  too,  very 
awful  in  the  idea  that  the  devil  within  the  man 
adjures  Jesus  not  to  come  and  torment  him  before 
his  time.  What  a  chapter  does  this  reveal !  Satan 
finds  his  happiness  in  tormenting  souls,  and  his  own 
torment  is  his  expulsion  from  the  dominion  of  the 
human  soul.     What  an  awful   thought  is   it   that 


80  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

there  should  be  a  being  in  God's  universe  whose 
happiness  consists  in  being  and  doing  evil,  whose 
enjoyment  is  proportionate  to  his  success  in  destroy- 
ing, who  was  a  murderer  from  the  beginning,  who  is 
beyond  all  hope  of  restoration,  recovery,  or  regener- 
ation, —  a  doomed,  lost,  and  ruined  spirit  for  ever ! 

The  demoniac  was  asked  by  Jesus,  "  What  is  thy 
name?"  but  he  was  silent;  and  the  evil  spirit  spake 
for  him,  and  thinking  to  frighten  Jesus,  whom  he 
recognized,  nevertheless,  as  the  Lord  of  heaven,  said 
in  accents  of  thunder,  "  My  name  is  Legion  :  for  we 
are  many,"  —  as  if  he  would  imply  that  they  were 
more  than  a  match  for  Jesus  ;  that  they  were  not 
one  solitary  spirit,  whom  he  might  cast  out  as  he 
had  done  in  other  cases,  but  a  multitude  whom  to 
resist  would  be  peril,  and  whom  to  overcome  would 
be  wholly  impossible.  Then  the  evil  spirit  prayed 
that  they  might  be  sent,  if  sent  out  at  all,  —  as  if 
feeling  that  their  presence  where  Christ  wished  it 
not  to  be  was  not  possible  —  into  a  herd  of  swine 
that  were  feeding  on  the  hills,  to  the  number  of 
two  thousand,  close  by.  The  strange  thing  is  that 
they  should  make  such  a  petition.  No  less  strange 
is  it  that  brutes  should  be  so  inhabited.  But  the 
brute  creation,  we  know,  is  under  the  domination  of 
evil  already.  There  is  evidence  in  our  own  expe- 
rience that  dumb  brutes  around  us  are  receptive  of 
human  influence ;  and  there  is  evidence  in  the  8th 
chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  that  all 
creation,  the  dumb  brutes  as  well  as  the  material 
creation,  groaneth  and  travaileth  in  pain,  waiting 
to  be  delivered.     There  is  nothing  more  strange  in 


MARK    V.  81 

the  swine  being  taken  possession  of  by  the  devil  — 
nay,  I  think  much  less  so  —  than  in  human  beings 
being  taken  possession  of;  for  Satan  has  not  only  a 
foothold  in  the  heart  of  man,  but  in  the  whole  of 
creation,  during  this  present  economy. 

But  it  may  be  said,  Does  it  not  seem  strange  that 
Jesus  should  permit  the  demons  to  go  into  the  swine  ? 
and  that  the  swine  should  be  taken  away  and 
destroyed,  and  thus  be  the  loss  of  very  great  property 
to  their  owners  ?  I  answer,  these  very  swine 
belonged  to  Jews,  who  were  forbidden  by  their 
law4  to  keep  them,  but  who  procured  Gentiles  to 
tend  them  for  them,  and  who  thought  tjiat  they,  the 
masters,  were  excused  for  their  crime  because  their 
servants  immediately  committed  it :  and  thus,  when 
the  demons  went  into  the  swine,  it  was  a  just  retri- 
bution upon  the  proprietors  for  doing  that  which 
they  knew  in  their  own  hearts  and  consciences  was 
forbidden  by  their  own  law. 

When  the  whole  herd  went  into  the  sea,  and 
perished  in  the  waters,  the  Gadarenes  "began  to 
pray  him  to  depart  out  of  their  coasts."  What  an 
awful  thing  is  this !  They  preferred  their  swine  to 
the  presence  of  the  Son  of  God.  And  yet,  has  not 
that  strange  and  revolting  fact  its  shadow,  projected 
forward  into  every  age*  ?  The  Jews  preferred  Barabbas 
to  Jesus ;  the  Gadarenes  preferred  their  swine  to  his 
presence ;  and  are  there  not  many  in  every  age  who 
prefer  their  own  pleasure,  profit,  aggrandizement,  to 
the  presence,  glory,  and  claims  of  the  Son  of  God  ? 
Reader,  do  you  ? 

We    read   next,   that   when    the   demoniac   was 


82  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

delivered  of  the  legion  of  evil  spirits,  he  came  to 
Jesus,  and  prayed  that  he  might  be  with  him.  How 
natural  is  that  trait !  He  felt  that  there  was  safety 
only  under  the  shadow  of  his  great  Deliverer.  He 
feared  the  return  of  the  evil  spirits,  and  he  felt  that 
He  alone  who  exorcised  them  was  able  to  repel  them 
and  keep  them  at  a  distance.  But  Jesus  "  suffered 
him  not,  but  saith  unto  him,  Go  home  to  thy  friends, 
and  tell  them  how  great  things  the  Lord  hath  done 
for  thee,  and  hath  had  compassion  on  thee."  What 
a  token  was  here  of  the  grandeur  of  the  character  of 
Jesus  !  If  Jesus  had  been  what  sceptics  and  infidels 
assert  he  was,  a  mere  pretender,  he  would  have  car- 
ried with  him  into  every  province  of  Judea  this  wonder- 
ful monument  or  token  of  his  power.  He  would  have 
taken  him  as  an  attesting  witness  wherever  he  went, 
and  have  let  the  multitude  thus  see  what  his  power 
was,  that  seeing  such  a  monument  of  it,  they  might 
recognize,  serve,  obey,  and  adore  him.  But  instead 
of  that,  with  a  quiet  majesty  that  felt  the  day  would 
come  when  this  testimony  would  have  its  proper 
effect,  he  says  to  him,  "  No,  you  are  not  to  remain 
with  me.  Go  home  to  thy  friends,  and  tell  them 
how  great  things  the  Lord  hath  done  for  thee  ;  that 
is  to  say,  You  have  got  a  great  blessing;  now  go 
and  make  it  known.  Whatever  a  man  has  that  has 
benefited  him,  and  that  is  fitted  to  benefit  others,  by 
the  laws  of  his  nature  he  feels  disposed  to  circulate. 
A  person  never  long  keeps  a  monopoly  of  good 
news.  He  feels  an  instinct  within  him,  originally 
from  God,  and  that  when  sanctified  still  sustains 
the  missionary,  to  tell  others  where  they  may  taste 


MARK    V.  83 

the  blessings  which  he  has  so  richly  received.  And 
Jesus  does  not  say,  "  Go  and  stand  upon  a  mountain 
top,  and  proclaim  it;  go  forth  as  a  preacher  or  a 
missionary  ;  but  he  says,  "  Go  and  tell  it  at  home, 
and  see  how  you  succeed  in  that  little  congregation ; 
and  then  will  be  the  time  to  go  forth  and  speak  it  to 
the  larger  congregation  of  the  world."  Sometimes 
excellent  Christian  young  men  come  to  me,  and  say, 
"  We  wish  to  be  ministers  or  missionaries  of  Chris- 
tianity." My  first  statement  is  this  :  You  must  not 
suppose  that  when  a  man  becomes  a  true  Christian, 
he  must  become  a  preacher ;  else,  were  all  preachers, 
where  would  be  the  people  to  hear  ?  Besides,  when 
you  have  tasted  the  power  and  influence  of  the 
Gospel,  it  is  not  necessary  that  you  should  preach 
in  order  to  do  good.  You  may  speak  by  the  quiet 
and  unobtrusive  purity  of  your  walk,  by  the  word 
dropped  in  season  —  behold,  how  good  it  is !  and 
you  may  speak  that  most  eloquent  of  all  sermons, 
a  holy  and  consistent  life ;  and  those  who  are 
about  you,  seeing  a  mighty  change  for  the  better, 
will  inquire  what  is  the  secret  spring  of  such  a 
transformation ;  and  then  you  will  tell  them  the 
good  things  the  Lord  has  done  for  you.  And  again, 
I  would  say  to  such  who  express  such  a  feeling,  Go 
first  and  see  what  you  can  do  in  our  schools,  or  in 
your  own  home.  Can  you  speak  to  those  who  are 
about  you,  your  servants,  sisters,  brothers,  or  parents  ? 
Can  you  say  a  good  word  to  them?  Can  you 
acquit  yourself  well  as  a  private  missionary  ?  If 
so,  then  you  may  be  accepted  as  a  public  one. 
There    is    great   common    sense   in    the    apostolic 


84  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

requirement  that  St.  Paul  lays  down,  that  he  who 
assumes  to  be  a  minister  of  the  Gospel  must  be 
one  who  rules  well  in  his  own  house;  as  if  he 
should  try  what  he  can  do  at  home,  before  he  enters 
the  great  field  of  missionary  enterprise. 

We  then  read  that  the  demoniac  was  seen  by  his 
friends  sitting  at  the  feet  of  Jesus,  clothed  and  in  his 
right  mind.  What  a  beautiful  change  was  here  ! 
Sitting  at  the  feet  of  Jesus,  the  place  of  safety,  the 
place  of  a  pupil,  the  place  of  endearing  reminis- 
cences ;  —  sitting  at  his  feet,  in  order  to  learn  more 
of  that  wondrous  messago  which  he  came  to  seal 
with  his  precious  blood.  And  clothed  —  no  longer 
in  torn  and  tattered  garments,  amid  the  tombs,  an 
outcast  and  an  exile  from  society,  but  clothed  and 
in  his  right  mind.  What  the  Gospel  makes  an  indi- 
vidual, it  can  make  a  nation.  If  we  wish  to  see  the 
demoniac  amid  the  tombs,  we  can  call  to  recollec- 
tion the  shattered  thrones,  the  exploded  dynasties  of 
the  past,  the  tumults  of  the  people,  the  precarious- 
ness  of  power,  the  fearful  elements  that  are  seething 
and  surging  beneath  many  parts  of  the  continent  of 
Europe.  Take  Italy,  or  Rome  alone,  and  there  you 
have  the  nearest  type  of  the  demoniac  amid  the 
tombs,  outcast,  torn,  miserable,  wretched.  And  then 
come  to  our  own  land,  with  all  its  faults  and  its 
defects,  and  think  what  it  is  that  has  made  it  so 
great,  and  comparatively  so  good.  What  is  it  that 
has  made  Britain  the  scene  of  peace,  of  temperate 
power  in  those  who  rule,  and  of  loyalty,  love,  and 
allegiance  in  those  who  obey  ?  What  has  made  it 
the  place  of  comparatively  happy  homes,  open  Bibles, 


MARK    V. 


85 


and  altars  free  ?  "What  has  made  it  clothed  and  in 
its  right  mind,  and  sitting  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  ?  The 
glorious  Gospel  preached  in  the  midst  of  it;  the 
open  Bible,  and  the  noble  freedom  of  understanding 
what  it  means,  and  saying  what  it  means,  with  no 
power  on  earth  to  repress  or  put  us  down. 

We  have,  after  this,  another  picture.  One  of  the 
rulers  of  the  synagogue,  Jairus  by  name,  came  and 
asked  Jesus  for  his  daughter  at  the  point  of  death. 
But  between  this  application  of  Jairus,  and  the 
answer  to  it,  there  is  an  interesting  episode,  which 
relates  to  a  woman  who  had  an  issue  of  blood 
twelve  years,  and  who  had  applied  to  many  physi- 
cians, but,  as  many  people  find  still,  she  got  worse 
instead  of  better.  But  at  last  she  went  to  the  right 
one.  My  dear  friends,  what  is  often  true  of  physical 
diseases  is  most  true  of  spiritual  ones.  Try  the 
priest,  your  own  attainments,  or  any  human  source 
whatever,  and  you  will  get  rather  worse  than  better ; 
but  touch  the  hem  of  Jesus'  garment,  make  applica- 
tion to  him,  and  he  will  heal  you.  The  question  of 
Jesus,  "  Who  touched  my  clothes  ?  "  was  simply  to 
bring  the  woman  to  a  sense  of  himself  as  the  great 
source  of  healing  virtue,  and  to  make  her  truly 
thankful,  as  well  as  obedient  to  him.  It  did  not 
imply  that  he  knew  not  who  had  touched  him,  or 
that  he  was  not  aware  that  healing  had  gone  forth 
from  him,  but  that  he  wished  her  clearly  to  compre- 
hend the  Author  of  the  cure,  to  feel  the  gratitude 
that  was  due -for  it,  and  to  go  forth  and  live  accord- 
ingly. 

We  then  read  of  the  ruler  who  came  and  asked 
8 


86  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

for  the  recovery  of  his  daughter.  Here  is  an 
instance  of  prayer  for  a  temporal  benefit;  and  that 
prayer  which  the  ruler  offered  for  his  daughter  twelve 
years  of  age,  you  may  offer  for  your  relatives.  I 
have  often  said  that  in  prayer  we  are  to  express  to 
God  every  want  that  we  feel,  temporal,  spiritual,  or 
eternal.  It  is  not  your  part  to  discriminate,  and  say, 
"  I  will  not  pray  for  this  blessing,  lest  it  be  not  for 
my  good."  It  is  the  prerogative  of  Him  who  gives 
the  blessing  to  determine  what  is  for  your  good,  and 
what  is  not.  You  pray  for  the  blessing  that  you  feel 
you  most  need,  and  leave  God  to  give  when,  where, 
and  how  he  pleases.  Jesus  immediately  came  to  the 
ruler's  house  with  certain  friends  and  witnesses,  and 
when  he  was  come,  he  remonstrated  with  him,  and 
said,  "  Be  not  afraid,  only  believe."  He  had  asked 
him  to  come,  and  he  ought  to  have  rejoiced,  and  to 
have  cherished  a  hope  that  Jesus  would  not  forsake 
him  till  he  had  granted  all  his  desire.  Then  our 
Lord  said,  in  words  truly  instructive,  "  The  damsel 
is  not  dead,  but  sleepeth."  Here  is  the  Scripture 
portrait  of  death.  It  is  a  sleep  ;  and  what  is  sleep  ? 
A  momentary  refreshment  of  the  physical  powers 
preparatory  to  the  morn,  when  you  go  forth  again  to 
toil.  And  what  is  death?  A  momentary  repose 
preparatory  to  the  everlasting  morn,  when  you  go 
forth  again  to  enjoy.  The  last  sleep  of  a  believer  is 
everlasting  and  joyous  refreshment.  Milton  very 
beautifully  describes  Adam  as  fancying  that  he  was 
about  to  die  when  he  first  slept;  and  many  of  you 
may  recollect  how,  when  young,  you  have  fought 
with  sleep,  and  shrunk  from  it,  as  if  unwilling  to 


MARK    V.  87 

surrender  yourselves  to  the  power  of  another.  And 
what  is  that  but  just  a  foreshadow  of  the  last  sleep, 
which  is  not  extinction  or  annihilation,  but  a 
momentary  repose  and  refreshment  preparatory  to 
everlasting  joys  at  God's  right  hand,  and  pleasures 
that  are  for  evermore  ?  Our  sleep  at  night  is  each 
day's  death;  our  life  is,  as  it  were,  taken  from  us 
every  night,  and  restored  every  morning.  When  you 
fall  asleep,  literally  and  truly  you  give  up  yourself. 
As  long  as  I  am  awake,  I  feel  that  I  have  a  hold  of 
life ;  but  when  I  sleep,  I  have  lost  my  grasp  of  it  — 
I  have  surrendered  myself  into  the  keeping  of  the 
great  Watchman  of  Israel.  And  why  so  ?  Just  to 
give  me  a  foreshadow  and  presentiment  of  that  death, 
which  is  only  the  sleep  of  a  moment  preparatory  to 
everlasting  joy.  And  what  is  old  age,  when  all  the 
limbs  become  stiff,  the  hair  becomes  grey,  and  the 
walk  becomes  slow  and  staggering  ?  It  is  just  the 
same  to  life  as  the  late  evening  is  to  the  weary  work- 
man. Towards  ten  or  eleven  at  night  he  becomes 
sleepy,  and  at  last  he  slumbers.  The  old  man  is 
beginning  to  get  sleepy;  the  evening  of  life  has 
come,  and  at  last,  softly,  like  a  babe,  he  lays  his 
head  upon  the  last  pillow,  and  falls  asleep  in  the 
bosom  of  his  Lord,  and  wakes  in  the  morning  into 
everlasting  life.  May  our  last  sleep  be  this,  for 
Christ's  sake.     Amen. 


Note.  —  Talitha,  in  the  ordinary  dialect  of  the  people,  is  a  word 
of  endearment  addressed  to  a  young  maiden.  —  Afford. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

LABORS    OF  JESTTS — OBJECTIONS   TO    HIM  —  REASON    OP   REJECTION 

IMPORTANCE     OP     FAITH  MISSIONARY     PREPARATION     AND 

APOSTOLIC  COMMISSION  —  MARTYRDOM  OF  JOHN  —  REASON  OF 
IT  —  FEMALE  DEPRAVITY  —  MIRACLE  OF  LOAVES  AND  FISHES  — 
THE   STORM. 

In  the  chapter  we  have  now  read,  it  is  first  of  all 
stated,  that  He  came  over  into  his  own  native  place, 
and  was  followed  there  by  the  disciples,  who  were 
attached  to  him,  partly  because  of  the  lessons  that 
he  taught,  and  partly  because  of  the  benefits  which 
he  had  bestowed  upon  them.  It  appears,  that  on 
the  Sabbath  day,  as  if  resolved  not  to  lose  a  single 
opportunity  of  usefulness,  he  began  to  teach  the 
great  lessons  that  he  came  to  seal  by  his  blood,  in 
the  synagogue,  where  the  Jews  permitted  a  stranger 
Jew  to  address  them,  and  to  unfold,  as  he  might 
be  able,  any  lessons  that  he  might  desire  to  teach 
them.  When  they  heard  Jesus  preach,  they  were 
so  struck  with  the  simplicity  of  his  words,  the  sub- 
limity of  his  doctrine,  and  the  love  and  affection 
that  shone  in  every  sentence,  as  well  as  the  unwea- 
ried assiduity  with  which  he  taught,  and  the  solemn 
emphasis  with  which  he  spoke,  that  they  said,  igno- 
rant who  he  was,  and  of  the  great  object  of  his 
mission,  or  the  glory  of  his  character  as  God  mani- 


MARK    VI.  89 

fest  in  the  flesh,  "  From  whence  hath  this  man  these 
things?  and  what  wisdom  is  this  which  is  given 
unto  him,  that  even  such  mighty  works  are  wrought 
by  his  hands  ? "  And  then  they  said,  "  Is  not  this 
the  carpenter?"  Perhaps  this  is  not  the  correct 
rendering  of  the  original.  The  Greek  word  is  tektuv, 
"  one  who  builds,  or  constructs,  or  arranges,"  from 
which  comes  our  word  "  technical,"  and  when  con- 
nected with  fire,  our  word  "  pyrotechnist,"  a  person 
who  works  in  fire.  Hence,  the  word  tektuv  would 
seem  to  imply  a  person  who  does  some  works, 
without  specifying  what  they  are.  They  said,  "  Is 
not  this  one  whom  we  know  to  have  labored  with 
his  own  hands?  Is  not  this  the  son  of  Mary,  the 
brother  of  James,  and  Joses,  and  of  Juda,  and 
Simon  ?  and  are  not  his  sisters  here  with  us  ?  And 
they  were  offended  at  him."  "What  is  this  man, 
that  he  should  make  such  pretensions?  Who  has 
given  him  this  supernatural  wisdom?  How  is  he 
better  than  we?  They  tried  to  weaken  the  effects 
of  the  message  by  tracing  the  genealogy  of  the 
man ;  but  it  is  not  who  says  it,  but  what  he  says, 
that  we  ought  to  regard.  It  is  not  the  genealogy  of 
the  minister  ecclesiastical  or  otherwise,  but  the  faith- 
fulness with  which  he  speaks,  the  fulness  of  the 
truths  that  he  utters,  and  the  fact  that  he  can  sub- 
stantiate the  lowest  and  loftiest  lessons  that  he 
impresses  by  a  reference  to  that  Word  which  decides 
all  controversies  without  appeal,  the  law  and  the 
testimony,  that  we  should  regard.  Jesus  did  not 
recriminate, — this  would  not  have  been  like  him  — 
but  instead,  he  made   a  remark  which  has  passed 


90  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

into  an  aphorism,  "  A  prophet  is  not  without  honor, 
but  in  his  own  country."  There  is  a  great  truth 
here.  The  more  closely  that  we  know  the  greatest 
man,  in  many  respects  the  less  he  will  appear. 
" '  Tis  distance  lends  enchantment  to  the  view ; " 
and  when  the  greatest  come  down  from  the  loftiest 
eminence,  and  are  scrutinized  and  seen  at  every 
angle,  and  beheld  in  every  light,  it  is  seen  that  there 
is  upon  the  whole  but  a  very  broad  dead  level  of 
humanity;  and  that,  whatever  be  the  extrinsic  dis- 
tinctions of  our  nature,  its  leading  and  substantial 
characteristics  are  everywhere  and  always  the  same. 
It  is  only  unprecedented  and  unparalleled  greatness 
that  will  bear  the  microscope  of  a  near  inspection ; 
it  is  the  few  and  the  far  between  that  will  stand  the 
minutest  and  closest  examination.  "We  all  seem 
much  less  to  ourselves  than  we  do  to  each  other; 
and  such  a  feeling,  whilst  it  should  not  degrade  us 
in  our  own  estimate,  ought  to  humble  us.  in  the 
sight  of  a  holy  and  heart-searching  God. 

Jesus  then  called  his  disciples,  and  left  the  place 
where  he  was,  because,  he  said,  "  he  could  there  do 
no  mighty  work,  save  that  he  laid  his  hands  upon 
a  few  sick  folk,  and  healed  them."  This  seems 
strange ;  Omnipotence  is  omnipotent  everywhere  — 
why  could  he  not  do  miracles  here  just  as  he  had 
done  them  elsewhere  ?  The  answer  is,  that  He 
made  it  the  law  of  his  procedure  on  earth,  that  he 
would  only  give  to  faith  the  fulness  of  power,  —  that 
he  would  only  put  forth  power  where  there  was 
trust  and  confidence  in  his  willingness  and  power 
to  do  the  miracle,     This  is  plain  from  the  6th  verse, 


MARK    VI.  91 

where  it  is  said,  "  he  marvelled  because  of  their 
unbelief."  Evidently  that  was  the  secret  of  his  ina- 
bility to  do  many  mighty  works  there.  It  is  just  to 
be  explained  in  the  same  way  as  that  God  will  not 
save  a  soul  without  faith ;  God  will  not  bless,  unless 
there  be  true  repentance ;  that  is,  he  treats  man  as  a 
rational  and  responsible  being,  and  not  as  an  autom- 
aton or  machine ;  and  expects  that  if  he  gives,  there 
shall  be  in  man  the  receptive  disposition  to  welcome 
in  conscious  love  what  God  so  freely  bestows. 

He  then  sent  forth  his  apostles;  and  in  the  cor- 
responding passage  in  Matthew,  it  is  said,  that  he 
sent  them  two  by  two.  Here  it  says,  that  they  were 
to  take  "  nothing  for  their  journey,  save  a  staff  only ; 
no  scrip,  no  bread,  no  money  in  their  purse :  but  be 
shod  with  sandals ;  and  not  put  on  two  coats ; " 
that  is,  they  were  not  to  load  themselves  with  super- 
fluities, but  to  go  just  as  they  were.  The  danger  of 
the  perishing  is  imminent ;  your  duties  to  them  are 
instant;  let  the  dead  bury  the  dead;  go  in  God's 
strength,  and  in  obedience  to  his  word ;  and  He 
who  gives  the  command  will  give  the  blessing  that 
will  more  than  sustain,  and  strengthen,  and  provide 
for  you.  I  know  this  has  been  quoted  as  a  prece- 
dent for  modern  missionary  enterprise,  but  it  seems 
to  me  that  it  is  quoted  in  violation  of  common  sense 
and  plain  Scriptural  intimations.  These  men  who 
were  here  commanded  to  go  forth  without  two 
coats,  and  without  money  in  their  purse,  or  provis- 
ion for  their  journey,  were  able  to  do  miracles,  to 
speak  in  tongues,  and  had  the  special  promise  of 
the  special  presence  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  him- 


92 


SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 


self.  If  we  can  speak  tongues  without  learning,  if 
we  can  heal  the  sick  and  raise  the  dead,  then  we 
may  go  forth  with  exactly  the  same  accoutrements, 
without  provision,  or  preparation :  but  if  it  be  the 
law  of  the  economy  under  which  we  live,  which 
none  can  doubt,  since  it  is  felt  by  all,  that  unless 
there  be  means,  there  will  be  no  end;  that  if  a  man 
will  not  work  neither  should  he  eat ;  that  study  is 
requisite  for  excellence,  and  preparation  for  effect, — 
then  we  must  believe  that  God  will  give  the  best 
'blessing  to  the  best  means  used  most  diligently  and 
prayerfully  in  reliance  on  his  presence. 

The  words  addressed  by  Jesus  to  the  apostles  are 
very  solemn.  — "  And  whosoever  shall  not  receive 
you,  nor  hear  you,  when  ye  depart  thence,  shake  off 
the  dust  under  your  feet  for  a  testimony  against 
them.  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  It  shall  be  more 
tolerable  for  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  in  the  day  of 
judgment,  than  for  that  city." 

Judged  by  the  analogy  of  all  their  proceedings, 
the  apostles  asked  submission,  not  to  themselves, 
but  to  their  blessed  Master;  or  credence,  not  to 
the  opinions  of  John,  Peter,  or  Paul,  but  to  the 
inspired  truths  of  the  Holy  Spirit  that  actuated 
them. 

Some  will  receive  the  truth  when  it  is  preached  to 
them,  and  some  will  reject  that  truth.  The  words 
of  Jesus  to  his  apostles  assume  a  class  that  receive 
it  and  a  class  that  reject  it.  This  was  illustrated  in 
the  soil  receptive  of  the  good  seed,  and  productive 
of  corresponding  harvests ;  and  we  saw  the  rejection 
of  the  truth  illustrated  in  the  soil  in  which  nettles 


MARK    VI.  93 

and  thorns  grow  up  and  choke  the  seed,  where 
the  deceitfulness  of  riches  and  the  cares  of  this 
world  prevent  the  seed  from  growing  up  ;  not 
because  the  word  has  lost  its  power,  but  because 
the  heart  of  the  hearer  has  parted  with  its  sus- 
ceptibility of  saving  and  of  sanctifying  impressions. 

We  also  gather  from  these  worcls  that  varied 
opportunities  of  improvement  are  given  to  different 
men.  On  one  soil  the  sunbeams  and  the  shower 
perpetually  fall;  upon  another  soil  there  seems  to 
rest  a  blighting  and  perpetual  shadow.  Some  men, 
wherever  they  go,  come  into  contact  with  the  truth  ; 
other  men  seem  never  to  have  an  opportunity  of 
hearing  that  truth  in  its  purity,  or  pressed  home 
upon  their  conscience  with  anything  like  effective 
power.  Why  it  is  so,  it  is  not  for  us  to  explain. 
The  same  difference  that  appears  in  the  natural 
world  is  exhibited  in  the  spiritual,  and  all  that  we 
can  say  is,  that  if  Jerusalem  was  raised  above 
Gomorrah,  and  if  England  has  been  raised  above 
Jerusalem,  it  has  been,  not  from  any  excellence  in 
the  first,  or  demerit  in  the  last,  but  because  that  "  so, 
Father,  it  seemed  good  in  thy  sight." 

God  takes  account  of  the  amount  of  opportuni- 
ties of  spiritual  improvement  that  we  have.  We 
think  that  he  sees  not,  or  that  the  privileges  that  we 
enjoy  are  too  trivial  for  him  to  take  notice  of;  but  it 
is  no  more  difficult  for  Deity  to  take  notice  of  an 
atom,  than  it  is  of  an  archangel.  The  mightiest 
things  are  not  beyond  his  control,  the  minutest 
things  are  not  beneath  his  inspection:  and  these  are 
not  minute,  but  very  mighty  things.     Our  responsi- 


94  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

bility  God  takes  exact  notice  of:  he  unweariedly 
sees  ;  he  patiently  waits :  the  only  comfort  that  we 
have  is,  that  God  will  not  bring  us  to  account 
for  what  we  never  had,  but  only  for  what  we 
have.  God  makes  us  answerable  for  what  he  gives, 
not  for  the  misuse  or  the  ignorance  of  what  he  gives 
not. 

We  gather  from  the  passage  that  a  day  arrives, 
either  at  each  individual's  departure,  or  when  the 
great  white  throne  shall  be  set,  and  all  shall  gather 
round  it,  —  some  with  the  pale  face  of  dismay,  others 
with  faces  gleaming  in  the  sunshine  of  everlasting 
happiness,  on  which  we  shall  give  in  our  account  to 
God.  At  that  great  day  Sodom,  shall  answer  for 
what  it  had,  Gomorrah  for  what  it  had,  Jerusalem 
for  what  it  had,  and  England  for  the  privileges  it 
has  ;  and  each  individual  in  each  shall  render  an 
account  to  God,  not  merely  for  deeds  done,  but  for 
opportunities  enjoyed,  the  knowledge  possessed,  and 
the  blessings  that  we  received.  Not  only  shall  we 
reap  what  we  have  sown,  but  we  shall  be  answer- 
able for  what  God  has  given  us ;  not  only  shall  we 
be  called  to  account  for  what  we  have  done,  but  for 
what  we  have  tied  up  and  laid  aside  in  a  napkin,  as 
if  God  were  a  hard  taskmaster,  reaping  where  he 
had  not  strewed.  The  greatness  of  our  present 
privileges  is  the  measure  of  our  future  responsibility. 
Blessings  that  are  now  tasted  at  the  footstool  God 
will  summon  up  to  witness  for  or  against  us  at  the 
throne,  and  we  shall  answer  for  their  use  or  their 
abuse  as  our  state  may  be.  "  I  was  in  prison," 
(there  was  an  opportunity  of  sympathy,)  "  and  you 


MARK     VI.  95 

did  not  visit  me;"  "  I  was  naked,"  (there  was  an 
opportunity  of  beneficence,)  "  and  you  did  not  clothe 
me : "  whereas,  it  is  said  to  the  righteous,  "  I  was  in 
prison,  and  you  came  to  me ; "  "I  was  sick,  and  ye 
visited  me  :  "  showing  that  an  opportunity  of  know- 
ing the  truth  is  a  responsibility,  an  opportunity 
of  doing  good  is  a  responsibility,  just  as  inseparable 
from  us  as  our  own  immortality.  Every  appeal  that 
was  made  to  you  for  aid,  every  appeal  that  was 
made  to  your  hearts  for  sympathy,  every  opportunity 
that  was  given  you  for  doing  good,  and  that  you  put 
off  or  treated  with  indifference,  if  the  day  of  retribu- 
tion overtakes  you,  will  rise  and  track  you  with 
its  footsteps  on  the  same  floor  on  which  you  stand 
waiting  for  an  everlasting  sentence ;  and  God  will 
show  that  if  we  of  the  nineteenth  century  have  had 
more  opportunities,  it  is  that  we  may  more  deeply 
feel  the  corresponding  weight  and  pressure  of  the 
responsibility  that  attaches  thereto. 

Let  us  ask,  then,  when  we  think  of  it  again,  com- 
paring ourselves  with  the  cities  of  the  plain,  whose 
smouldering  and  sulphureous  ruins  are  all  that  attest 
that  they  once  were  ;  and  with  the  churches  of  Asia, 
whose  candlesticks  are  broken  or  utterly  removed; 
or  with  Jerusalem,  once  the  joy  of  the  earth  and  the 
beauty  of  every  land ;  what  we  have  in  this  land  of 
ours,  what  privileges,  what  mercies  we  so  richly 
enjoy,  and  then  reflect  what  responsibility  before 
God  lies  on  us.  When  we  look  at  the  defects  of  our 
own  land,  —  at  the  abuses  unremoved  that  ought  to 
be  removed,  —  at  the  things  undone  that  ought  to  be 
done,  —  we  are  sometimes  disposed  to  think  unjustly 


96  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

of  it ;  but  when  we  feel  so  disposed,  oh !  think  of  its 
beautiful  Sabbaths,  with  comparatively  few  and  thin 
shadows  cast  upon  them  —  of  its  open  Bibles,  with- 
out a  pope  to  shut  them,  or  a  grand  duke  to  imprison 
for  reading  them,  or  a  priest  to  burn  them  —  of  the 
Gospel  so  faithfully,  so  fully  preached  in  so  many 
pulpits  and  in  so  many  parishes  —  not  so  many 
as  we  could  wish,  but  in  more  than  the  Gospel 
was  ever  preached  in  since  the  days  of  the  apostles 
themselves,  - —  think,  I  say,  of  all  these  the  inesti- 
mable privileges  of  our  land,  and  you  will  not  only 
be  more  thankful  for  what  you  have,  but  you  will 
feel  how  responsible  we  are  in  the  sight  of  God  for 
the  use  or  the  abuse  of  them.  Verily,  it  will  be  more 
tolerable  for  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  than  for  us,  if  we 
receive  not  the  things  that  belong  to  our  eternal  peace. 
At  the  last  reckoning,  you  will  notice,  God  looks 
more  at  the  opportunities  of  improvement  we  have 
lost,  at  the  privileges  we  have  misused,  than  at  the 
actual  sins  we  have  perpetrated.  It  ought  never  to 
be  forgotten  that  the  condemning  sin  in  our  case  will 
not  be  so  much  the  wickedness  we  have  done,  but 
the  rejection  of  the  remedy  that  was  offered ;  and  so 
our  condemnation  will  not  be  the  past  sins  we  have 
committed,  but  the  present  rejection  of  the  only 
remedy  provided  for  the  pardon  of  those  sins.  What 
does  our  blessed  Lord  say  ?  "  This  is  the  condem- 
nation, that  light  is  come  into  the  world,  but  that 
men  have  loved  darkness  rather  than  light."  "  He 
that  believeth  not  is  condemned  already."  Why? 
"  Because  he  hath  not  believed  in  the  only  begotten 
Son  of  God."     The  sins  you  have  committed  are 


MARK     VI.  97 

heinous  enough,  —  if  indeed  they  are  to  be  com- 
pared in  heinousness,  —  without  this  superadded  sin, 
namely,  the  rejection  of  the  only  Saviour,  whose 
blood  can  wash  them  all  away  ;  and  therefore,  he 
says,  the  responsibility  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah 
and  Jerusalem  will  be  that  they  had  privileges  and 
opportunities  and  blessings  which  they  did  not  use, 
or  in  the  use  of  which  they  did  not  accept  the  only 
remedy  provided  for  their  restoration  and  recovery. 
Now  if  this  be  so,  that  our  great  and  condemning 
sin,  wherever  a  condemning  sin  is  found  cleaving  to 
us,  will  be,  not  what  we  have  said,  thought,  or  done, 
but  that  we  have  rejected  the  only  atonement,  sacri- 
fice, and  Saviour ;  then  let  us  remember  that  every 
day  that  shuts  down  on  us  as  strangers  to  the  power 
of  living  religion,  adds  to  the  weight  of  our  guilt, 
and  deepens  our  responsibility  in  the  sight  of  God. 
A  day  slips  past  us,  and  we  think  nothing  of  it ;  but 
that  day  has  left  upon  us  an  influence  that  the 
waters  of  death  will  not  wash  out,  that  will  appear 
fixed,  permanent,  indelible  at  the  judgment  bar  of 
God  himself.  It  is  one  of  the  most  solemn  truths  in 
all  God's  providential  or  inspired  records,  that  one 
day  gives  its  coloring  it  may  be  to  eternity,  that 
a  deed  may  be  done  in  a  single  hour  that  will  rise  in 
echoing  crashes,  and  reverberate  throughout  everlast- 
ing ages. 

It  is  one  of  the  most  solemn  thoughts,  that  the 
acts  of  the  present  life  have  inexhaustible  retribu- 
tion when  this  present  life  shall  have  passed  away. 
What  solemnity  does  this  give  to  the  seed-time; 
what  emphasis  does  this  give  to  that  word  now ; 
9 


98  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

and  of  what  importance  is  to  us  the  consciousness 
that  our  present  character  will  be  reflected  for  ever : 
that  he  that  is  unjust  at  death  is  unjust  for  ever  ; 
that  he  that  is  unholy,  is  unholy  for  ever!  What 
an  emphasis  does  this  give  to  every  address ;  wha* 
worth  to  every  moment  as  it  slips  past ;  what 
a  solemn  call  to  lay  hold  upon  every  opening  and 
avenue  for  instruction,  usefulness,  and  good,  and  to 
consecrate  all  to  that  best  and  noblest  of  ends,  the 
glory  of  God  and  the  safety  of  the  never-dying 
soul ! 

There  is  no  excuse  whatever  for  neglecting  or 
misusing  the  opportunities  of  salvation  that  you 
have.  If  there  be  a  valid  excuse  in  any  man's  case 
for  not  being  a  Christian,  then  that  man  will  never 
be  condemned  at  the  judgment-seat  of  God.  I  say, 
if  there  be  in  your  case  a  valid  excuse  for  not  being 
a  Christian,  then  there  is  no  guilt  in  your  not  being 
a  Christian.  It  is  rather  odd  for  one  to  speak  of  an 
excuse  for  not  being  a  Christian  —  an  excuse  for  not 
being  happy  —  an  excuse  for  not  wishing  to  be 
happy:  it  seems  an  absurdity;  when  it  is  weighed 
and  examined,  it  almost  confutes  itself:  and  yet 
men  do  make  excuses ;  "  I  have  married  a  wife,  and 
I  cannot  come."  All  sorts  of  excuses  have  been 
made  ;  and  if  they  be  valid  excuses,  then  there  is  no 
sin  in  stopping  away.  But  there  is  no  excuse  in  the 
universe  for  not  being  a  child  of  God  and  an  heir 
of  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  If  God  does  not  offer 
the  blessing  to  you,  then  you  are  justified  in  not 
being  a  Christian  ;  or  if  God  lays  upon  you  some 
overwhelming  pressure,    or   reprobative  decree  that 


MARK    VI.  99 

sinks  you  to  hell  against  your  own  will,  then  you 
are  to  be  pitied  ;  but  if  it  be  true,  that  to  every  soul 
under  heaven  there  is  offered  instant  peace  with 
God,  just  on  condition  that  that  soul  will  take  God 
at  his  word,  believe  and  act  accordingly,  then  there 
is  no  excuse  for  not  being  a  Christian,  and  all  pre- 
tence is  dissipated  :  it  is  not  that  you  can  not  be,  it 
is  that  you  will  not  be  saved ;  and  if  it  be  true  that 
Jerusalem  had  these  truths  stated  more  clearly  than 
Sodom  ever  had ;  if  it  be  true  that  our  country  has 
these  truths  more  fully  and  frequently  reiterated  than 
former  countries  had,  then  our  responsibility  is  just 
the  exact  shadow  and  measure  of  our  opportunities 
of  spiritual  instruction.  We  have  what  they  had 
not,  —  the  complete  Bible,  the  risen  and  interceding 
Lord,  the  Holy  Spirit  waiting  to  convert  and  to 
sanctify.  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  and  Jerusalem 
lived  in  the  gray  and  misty  dawn ;  and  if  they 
perished  in  their  sins,  because  they  saw  not  Christ, 
then  how  shall  we  escape  if  we  neglect  the  Saviour 
who  has  risen  like  the  sun  above  the  horizon,  with 
healing  under  his  wings?  And  if  it  be  true,  that 
our  opportunities  are  every  day  and  every  year 
becoming  fewer;  if  it  be  true,  as  thinking  minds  and 
grave  minds  seem  to  conclude,  that  all  Europe  is 
more  or  less  sinking  into  superstition  and  despotism, 
and  inclosing  this  isle  of  ours  like  a  terrible  girdle  of 
thick  night;  if  it  be  true  that  this  is  to  be  the  only 
Goshen  in  the  midst  of  European  Egypt;  if  it  be 
true  that  this  is  to  be  the  only  spot  where  freedom 
will  have  its  footing, —  where  there  shall  be  pure 
religion  and  holy  altars,  and  men  with  the  noble  pre- 


100  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

rogative  of  worshipping  God  in  the  way  that  they 
think  best ;  if  it  be  true  that  even  this  isle  will  come 
■under  judgments  for  its  past  unfaithfulness,  and,  it  may 
be,  be  cast  down,  but  not  cast  off,  for  the  sins  it  has 
committed  against  God,  —  then  the  very  shortness 
of  the  day,  the  very  nearing  of  the  night,  ought  to 
make  us  "  now,  while  it  is  called  to-day,"  do  what 
we  can  do,  "  for  the  night  cometh  when  no  man  can 
work."  And  if  even  this  should  not  be  so, —  and 
we  have  not  a  certain  knowledge  of  it,  but  only  a 
vague,  it  may  be,  or  probable,  conjecture,  —  we 
know  this,  that  if  Christ  do  not  come  to  us,  if  we 
do  not  live  to  the  day  when  he  shall  come  to  the 
earth  to  make  it  and  us  happy,  that  we  shall  be 
taken  to  him.  If  it  be  true  that  beyond  the  grave 
there  are  no  means  of  instruction,  —  that  character 
exists  externally  as  it  has  been  formed  in  time, — 
that  man  continues  ever  what  man  is  now,  —  that 
just  as  a  man  now  sows,  he  will  for  ever  and  for 
ever  reap,  —  that  eternity  is  only  the  endless  retri- 
bution of  what  is  done  in  time,  —  then  seize  the 
moments  as  they  sweep  past ;  be  sure  that  you  are 
found  in  Christ,  resting  on  him,  trusting  in  him, 
loving  him,  sacrificing  in  his  service,  and  having 
hearts  beating  responsive  to  his  bidding  always ; 
and  then  come  life,  come  death,  it  will  be  well  with 
you.  Can  you  conceive  a  more  awful  recollection 
than  this  in  eternity,  that  you  have  lost  opportunities 
you  might  have  seized,  —  that  you  were  within  an 
inch  of  heaven,  and  missed  it,  —  that  you  might 
have  been  saved,  and  would  not  be  saved?  If  it 
be  most   awful   to  a  noble    mind    to    be  conscious 


MARK    VI.  101 

that  we  have  been  ungrateful  to  one  who  deserved 
gratitude,  how  painful  must  be  the  ceaseless  and 
tearing  recollection,  that  we  have  been  ungrateful 
to  God,  disobedient  to  his  law,  and  destructive  to 
our  noblest  interests ! 

And  let  me  notice,  in  the  next  place,  what  is  no 
less  important,  —  that,  if  you  do  not  now  decide  for 
Christ,  if  you  be  not  now  converted,  every  day  that 
elapses  without  a  saving  impression  upon  you,  only 
renders  more  hopeless  the  prospect  of  your  everlast- 
ing happiness.  We  become  habituated  to  the  calls 
of  the  Gospel ;  solemn  calls  lose  their  point,  because 
our  hearts  have  lost  their  susceptibility.  The  arrow 
that  pierced  the  heart  falls  by  and  by  blunted  and 
broken  from  it,  and  the  voice  that  stirred  our  feelings 
like  a  trumpet,  ceases  at  last  to  have  any  effect  at 
all.  God  gives  up  the  barren  ground,  just  as  you 
would  give  up  a  tree  that  you  have  watered  and 
manured  and  labored  on,  when  it  brings  forth  no 
fruit.  You  would  say,  "  Cut  it  down,  it  only  cum- 
bers the  ground ;  it  not  only  takes  the  place  that  a 
fruitful  tree  might  have  taken,  but  it  distributes 
around  it  a  baneful  shadow  that  prevents  other 
trees  bearing  fruit."  I  think  it  a  very  solemn 
thought,  that  no  man  can  live  for  himself:  there 
is  no  such  thing  as  pushing  through  the  world  with- 
out making  men  better  or  worse ;  there  is  no  such 
thing  in  this  wide  world  of  ours  as  a  blank ;  every 
man  is  either  a  blot  that  stains  it,  or  a  blessing  that 
does  it  good :  a  blank  he  cannot  be.  What  a  solemn 
thought,  then :  if  we  are  not  bearing  fruit,  if  we  are 
not  distributing  around  us  good  influences,  if  we  are 
9  * 


102  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

not  making  the  world  better  for  having  been  in  it, 
we  are  in  some  shape,  in  some  sphere,  to  some 
extent,  doing  mischief  and  evil  to  mankind.  If  such 
opportunities  as  those  I  have  stated  be  ours,  if  the 
abuse  of  them  shall  thus  be  exacted  at  the  judgment- 
day,  if  the  continuance  of  them  is  dependent  upon 
our  right  use  of  them,  then  believe  in  the  Saviour, 
receive  the  words  of  the  apostles,  rest  upon  him  ; 
say,  "  Blessed  Jesus,  to  whom  can  we  go  but  unto 
thee  ?  Thou  hast  the  words  of  eternal  life ; "  say, 
"  Where  thou  goest  I  will  go  ;  thy  God  shall  be  my 
God,  and  thy  people  shall  be  my  people."  Decide 
that  you  will  look  at  every  thing  in  the  light  of 
the  Bible, — that  y6u  will  determine  your  conduct 
everywhere  by  what  God  says,  —  that  you  will  live, 
in  the  language  of  the  Shorter  Catechism,  "in  dis- 
charging the  main  duty  of  man,  which  is  to  glorify 
God,  and  to  enjoy  him  forever."  What  prevents  you, 
what  prevents  every  man  and  woman  in  this  assem- 
bly from  being  a  decided  Christian  ?  Is  it,  let  me 
ask,  the  fear  of  man  which  brings  a  snare  ?  Are 
you  afraid  some  one  will  scoff  at  you  or  despise 
you  ?  "What  does  that  matter  ?  Fear  not  him  who, 
at  his  worst,  can  only  kill  the  body,  but  fear  Him 
who  can  cast  soul  and  body  into  hell.  Is  it  the  love 
of  the  world  ?  Is  it  that  you  wish  a  little  more  of  its 
smiles,  a  little  more  of  its  wealth,  a  little  more  enjoy- 
ment of  its  prospects  ?  The  world's  smiles  will  not  be 
less  beautiful,  and  the  good  things  of  the  world  will 
not  be  less  so,  because  you  look  at  them  in  the  right 
light :  you  will  moderately  use  the  good,  you  will 
be  thankful  for  the  blessing,  and  you  will  be  carefully 


MARK     VI.  103 

kept  from  the  evil  that  is  in  the  world.  Or,  are  you 
afraid  now  to  decide,  because  you  fear  the  responsi- 
bility of  a  profession  of  the  Gospel  ?  It  is  a  respon- 
sibility: he  who  says  he  is  a  Christian  before  God  is 
bound  to  justify  his  assertion ;  but  remember  that 
when  you  take  the  duties  of  the  Christian  religion, 
you  do  not  go  forth  upon  a  warfare  on  your  own 
account,  in  your  own  strength,  but  you  receive  with 
its  duties  and  its  dignities  its  strength.  Decide, 
therefore,  to  confess  the  Saviour, — to  love  his  name, 
—  to  glory  ki  his  cross,  —  to  trust  in  his  sacrifice,  — 
to  observe  his  will,  —  to  do  his  commandments, — 
to  commemorate  his  death,  —  and,  wheresoever  you 
are,  not  to  be  ashamed  of  that  blessed  Gospel  which 
is  the  wisdom  of  God  and  the  power  of  God,  and 
you  will  find  the  earlier  you  decide  the  fewer 
difficulties  you  will  have  to  encounter  in  the  future, 
and  the  happier  you  will  be-in  the  present;  for  God 
himself  hath  said,  "  Them  that  honor  me  I  will 
honor."  "  Seek  me  early,  and  you  shall  find  me." 
"  Seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteous- 
ness, and  all  other  things  shall  be  added  unto  you." 

We  have  after  this  the  remarkable  history  of  the 
martyrdom  of  John,  and  of  the  iniquitous  conduct 
of  Herod,  and  of  those  who  were  associated  with 
him,  which  we  read  in  the  previous  Gospel  of  Mat- 
thew. This  is,  perhaps,  more  explicit  and  minute  in 
its  details  than  the  account  given  there.  Herod 
heard  what  Jesus  was  doing.  He  did  not  know  it 
was  Jesus,  but  said  it  was  John  risen  from  the  dead. 
I  do  not  know  in  the  whole  compass  of  Scripture  a 
more  remarkable  proof  of  the  power  of  conscience 


104  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

than  the  exclamation  of  Herod  on  this  occasion. 
Just  recollect  that  Herod  was  a  Sadducee.  He  dis- 
believed in  the  separate  existence  of  the  soul,  and 
rejected  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection  from  the 
dead  ;  but  his  conscience  was  mightier  than  logic, 
and  the  recollection  of  his  crimes  called  up  truths 
that  he  was  willing  and  determined  to  deny;  and 
he  said,  though  he  disbelieved  theoretically  in  the 
resurrection  from  the  dead,  "  This  is  John  risen 
from  the  grave,  in  retribution  of  my  cruel  treat- 
ment of  him,  and  no  doubt  he  is  come  to  punish 
me,  as  a  messenger  from  God,  for  the  cruel  murder 
of  which  I  made  him  the  victim."  This  shows 
us  how  one  single  flash  of  conscience  will  destroy 
a  whole  creed,  when  that  creed  is  founded  on  false- 
hood. 

Then  the  account  of  the  murder  is  given.  "  Herod 
had  sent  forth  and  laid  hold  upon  John,  and  bound 
him  in  prison  for  Herodias'  sake,  his  brother  Philip's 
wife :  for  he  had  married  her."  Now  all  that  John 
said  to  the  tetrarch  was,  "  It  is  not  lawful  for  thee  to 
have  thy  brother's  wife."  This  was  only  what  it 
was  John's  duty  to  do.  If  he  had  done  less,  he 
would  have  come  short  of  his  obligations ;  if  he  had 
said  more,  it  might  have  bordered  on  recrimination. 
But  having  stated  faithfully  and  fully,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  courtesy  and  affectionate  rebuke,  what  he 
felt  to  be  the  duty  that  he  owed  to  the  tetrarch,  the 
governor  of  the  land ;  not  Herod,  it  is  said,  the  man 
rebuked,  but  Herodias,  who  felt  that  that  rebuke  that 
touched  her  assumed  husband  really  rebounded  and 
smote  herself,  "  had  a  quarrel  against  John."     Why 


MARK    VI.  105 

with  John  ?  If  John  said  what  was  right,  she  ought 
to  have  regarded  him ;  if  he  said  what  was  wrong 
she  ought  to  have  confuted  him ;  if  he  said  what 
was  worthless,  she  ought  to  have  despised  him ;  but 
on  no  ground  was  she  warranted  in  having  a  quarrel 
with  a  man  who  dared  to  utter  what  he  felt  to  be 
the  language  of  faithfulness  and  truth,  not  to  gratify 
himself,  but  to  do  her  good.  We  read  that  Herod, 
so  far  from  hating  him,  seems  to  have  had  —  shall  I 
say,  the  grace  ?  no ;  but  the  courtesy,  and  the  sub- 
duedness  of  nature,  to  take  quietly  what  he  said. 
You  have  here  the  bad  man  Herod,  and  you  have 
here  the  depraved  woman  Herodias ;  but  it  is  always 
the  law  that  the  corruption  of  the  most  excellent  is 
always  the  worst.  The  angel  falling  stops  not 
in  his  descent  till  he  becomes  a  fiend.  A  woman 
degraded  becomes  more  terrible  in  her  degradation 
even  than  man.  Herod  took  the  rebuke  because 
he  felt  it  was  true  ;  Herodias  repelled  the  rebuke, 
and  worked  it  into  an  element  of  spite  and  revenge 
against  John. 

We  read  that  Herod  went  so  far  in  this  matter, 
that  he  feared  John.  Why  ?  "  Knowing  that  he 
was  a  just  man  and  an  holy."  There  is  sublimity 
in  goodness ;  there  is  grandeur  in  moral  greatness  ; 
there  is  a  nobleness  that  the  world  cannot  bestow. 
Herod  so  felt  the  moral  power  of  the  lonely  Baptist, 
that  he  observed  him  —  watched  him  ;  and  when  he 
heard  him,  he  did  many  things  —  obeyed  much  that 
he  said ;  and  not  only  so,  but  he  heard  him  gladly. 
It  is  possible  for  a  preacher  to  be  popular  with  his 
people,  and  yet  they  may  exhibit  none  of  the  practi- 


106  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

cal  fruits  that  his  preaching  tends  to  produce.  It  is 
possible  to  admire  the  minister's  eloquence,  and  yet 
to  detest  the  minister's  message.  It  is  possible  to  be 
so  charmed  with  the  manner  in  which  he  says 
a  thing,  that  you  may  yet  afford  to  hate  the  matter, 
that  smites  the  conscience,  rebukes  the  life,  and  tells 
you  that  all  is  not  right  in  the  sight  of  God.  And  it 
is  a  great  law  that  wherever  the  Gospel  is  truly  and 
faithfully  preached,  making  allowance  for  the  failings 
of  the  best,  and  the  defects  of  the  holiest,  a  Jiearer 
"Who  listens  to  it  a  certain  time  will  either  close  with 
an  offered  Saviour,  become  converted  and  Christian, 
or  he  will  become  hardened,  and  go  away,  and,  not 
behead  the  preacher,  for  that  he  cannot  do,  but 
desert  him  as  one  who  has  changed,  when  really  and 
truly  it  is  the  hearer  who  has  determined  to  perse- 
vere in  ways  that  his  conscience  knows  to  be  wrong. 
So  Herod  here  was  very  sorry  when  the  alternative 
was  put  before  him,  that  his  own  rashness  obliged 
him  to  adopt  ;  but  still  he  entered  into  it.  The 
daughter  of  Herodias  danced  beautifully  before  him, 
and  amid  the  strains  of  music  and  the  splendors  of 
the  spectacle  and  the  beauty  of  the  danseuse,  he  was 
so  charmed,  that  he  "  said  unto  the  damsel,  Ask  of 
me  whatsoever  thou  wilt,  and  I  will  give  it  thee,"  — 
a  very  rash  offer,  one  that  he  ought  not  to  have 
made,  and  one  that  she,  if  actuated  by  a  proper 
sense  of  what  was  due  to  herself  and  him,  would 
not  have  accepted. 

But  she  went  forth,  and  said  to  her  mother, 
"  What  shall  I  ask  ?  "  That  was  very  proper.  She 
went  and  asked  her  mother,  the  best  guide  that  a 


MARK     VI.  107 

daughter  could  possibly  have,  to  what  she  should  do. 
There  was  a  trait  of  goodness  in  that.  But  the 
mother  said,  with  infamous  wickedness  and  cruelty, 
unworthy  of  the  woman,  disgraceful  to  the  mother, 
"  Ask  the  head  of  John  the  Baptist."  Her  own 
spite  revived  ;  the  wickedness  of  her  heart  was 
renewed  ;  and  having  power,  she  resolved  to  turn  that 
power  to  the  worst  and  most  wicked  account.  "  And 
she  came  in  straightway  with  haste  unto  the  king." 

One  wonders  that  a  daughter  would  have  done 
so;  and  yet  it  shows  that  a  daughter  may  dance 
with  grace  and  be  a  perfect  beauty,  and  yet  have  a 
heart  worthy  of  a  fiend.  She  may  have  all  the 
accomplishments  that  the  world  can  admire,  but  be 
destitute  of  that  inner  beauty,  that  holy  character, 
which  God  sees,  and  applauds,  and  registers  in 
heaven.  Here  was  the  daughter  of  Herodias  the 
admiration  of  a  court  on  earth,  but  the  execration 
of  a  court  in  heaven.  Here  was  one  who  had  all 
the  accomplishments  of  this  world,  but  had  never 
learned  the  nobler  accomplishment  of  loving  the 
holy,  giving  deference  to  the  good,  doing  justly,  lov- 
ing mercy,  and  walking  humbly  with  her  God.  One 
can  scarcely  conceive  any  person  having  the  horrid 
and  revolting  depravity  —  not  to  say  of  heart,  but  — 
of  taste  to  ask,  not  only  for  the  death  of  the  Baptist, 
which  one  can  understand,  but  to  ask,  in  order  to 
gratify  the  infuriate  vengeance  that  was  in  her  heart, 
that  she  might  have  his  head  presented  before  her, 
that  she  might  look  with  joy  on  the  silent  and  pale 
lips  from  which  once  came  forth  the  burning  words 
of  solemn   and   faithful   rebuke.      This   was   done. 


108  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

Herod  paid  deference  to  his  oath,  and  therefore  he 
did  it.  Perhaps  there  was  a  latent  feeling  that  as  he 
wo  aid  not  get  rid  of  his  wickedness,  it  was  well  to 
get  rid  of  the  prophet  who  spake  evil  concerning 
him ;  and  therefore,  his  deference  to  his  oath  was 
simply  a  pretext  to  cover  the  atrocious  deed  that  he 
did.  But  you  say,  if  he  had  made  such  an  oath, 
was  it  his  duty  to  break  it?  I  answer,  it  is  no  one's 
duty  to  break  an  oath ;  but  the  sin  here  was  in  tak- 
ing it,  not  in  breaking  it.  The  sin  was  in  taking 
the  oath  to  do  wickedness,  not  in  breaking  that 
oath,  when  brought  to  a  better  mind.  And  this 
exculpates  many  who  have  been  blamed.  Luther, 
for  instance,  took  an  oath  to  remain  a  celibate  for 
life ;  he  chose  to  marry  a  nun.  His  sin  was  in  talc- 
ing the  oath,  if  it  was  his  sin,  for  it  was  in  his 
ignorance ;  but  he  did  no  sin  in  violating  what  he 
saw  to  be  wrong  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  in  doing, 
however  late,  what  was  just  and  right  before  him. 
The  great  offence  is  swearing  to  do  what  is  wrong ; 
it  is  a  step  in  the. right  direction  when  you  refuse 
to  do  the  thing  that  is  unequivocally  wrong,  not- 
withstanding the  oath  that  you  have  taken  to  do  it. 

We  read  of  the  miracle  Jesus  wrought  to  satisfy 
the  temporal  wants  of  the  people.  The  34th  verse 
is  extremely  expressive.  One  can  almost  see  in  the 
language  of  it,  as  has  been  remarked  by  Alford,  that 
Mark  was  the  companion  of  Peter;  and  it  would 
seem  as  if  Peter  had  been  almost  the  penman  of 
these  words,  —  "  And  Jesus,  when  he  came  out,  saw 
much  people,  and  was  moved  with  compassion 
toward  them,  because  they  were  as  sheep  not  having 


MARK    VI.  109 

a  shepherd :  and  he  began  to  teach  them  many- 
things."  You  recollect  what  Peter  says,  "  Ye  were 
as  sheep  going  astray ;  but  are  now  returned  unto 
the  Shepherd  and  Bishop  of  your  souls."  Now  this 
miracle  of  the  loaves  and  fishes  was  unquestionably 
a  true  one ;  but  yet  it  was  not  a  greater  miracle  than 
a  beautiful  harvest.  We  think  that  the  creation  of  a 
hundred  loaves  out  of  two  was  a  miracle ;  and  so  it 
was,  because  it  was  an  interruption  of  the  continu- 
ous laws  under  which  the  world  is  governed ;  but  it 
is  not  one  whit  less  a  miracle  that  a  seed  cast  into 
the  soil  should  germinate,  and  bud,  and  grow  up 
into  a  stalk,  and  then  into  an  ear,  and  then  into  the 
full  corn  in  the  ear,  and  finally  the  glad  and  benefi- 
cent harvest.  But  we  are  so  accustomed  to  the 
spring  and  the  harvest,  the  sowing  and  the  reaping, 
that  we  call  that  the  natural  thing ;  and  we  are  so 
unaccustomed  to  one  loaf  being  transformed  or  mul- 
tiplied into  a  hundred,  that  we  call  that  the  miracu- 
lous thing.  The  fact  is,  miracles  are  suspensions  or 
interruptions  of  the  existing  order  of  things ;  but  the 
existing  order  of  things  might  have  been  different; 
and  all  that  a  miracle  proves  is,  that  the  God  who 
made  the  machinery  has  chosen  to  suspend  or  alter 
its  action.  But  you  will  notice  that  all  the  miracles 
of  Jesus  had  a  prospective  feature  or  character  in 
them.  In  other  words,  they  were  not  the  putting 
nature  out,  but  always  the  bringing  nature  up.  The 
whole  of  nature  is  in  an  abnormal  condition.  It  was 
never  meant  that  people  should  be  ill,  or  have 
wrinkles,  or  blind  eyes,  or  deaf  ears,  or  gray  hairs,  or 
old  age;  it  was  never  meant  that  there  should  be 
10 


110  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

biting  frosts,  and  wintry  snows.  All  these  things  are 
the  results  of  sin.  They  are  most  unnatural ;  they 
have  been  superinduced  by  sin.  But  all  the  miracles 
of  Jesus  were  in  the  direction  of  retuning  creation's 
strings,  bringing  them  back  to  their  lost  harmony  — 
restoring  the  sick,  which  is  the  abnormal  state,  to 
health,  which  is  the  normal  state  —  bringing  the  sea 
into  calm,  the  winds  into  quiet;  and  proving  that 
nature  had  gone  wrong,  and  that  nature's  Lord 
alone  could  put  her  right,  and  that  he  alone  would 
do  so. 

And  lastly,  we  have  in  this  most  interesting  chap- 
ter the  miracle  of  allaying  the  storm.  Notice  that 
Jesus  went  into  a  mountain  to  pray,  whilst  his  dis- 
ciples went  on  the  ocean  to  toil.  This  teaches  us 
that  while  we  labor  Christ  intercedes ;  while  we  are 
on  the  sea,  buffeting  with  the  waves,  he  is  on  the 
mountain  side  pleading  for  us.  They  remained  till 
about  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  without  any  help, 
and  were  giving  up  all  for  lost;  but  about  the  fourth 
watch  Jesus  came.  You  may  be  in  trials,  afflic- 
tions, sickness,  for  three  watches  ;  but  at  the  fourth 
Christ,  who  never  leaves  nor  forsakes  you,  will  come. 
But  very  often  the  Redeemer  gives  relief  in  a  way 
that  we  expect  it  not ;  and  we  think  that  instead  of 
being  Christ  the  Redeemer,  it  is  an  evil  spirit  come 
to  torment  us ;  and  we  are  surprised  and  delighted 
when  we  find  it  is  He  whom  the  winds  and  the 
waves  obey. 

What  proofs  have  we  here  of  a  present  God! 
What  beneficence  is  there  in  all  these  strokes  of 
power!     What  evidence  that  the   Redeemer  came 


MARK    VI.  Ill 

forth  into  the  world,  who  was  once  its  Creator ;  and 
what  ground  for  the  blessed  hope  that  He  who  gave 
these  instalments  of  what  shall  be,  these  earnests  of 
what  is  predicted  to  be,  will  one  day  come  in  the 
clouds  with  power  and  great  glory,  and  restore  all 
things,  and  let  the  world  close,  as  the  world  began, 
with  Paradise! 


Note.  —  [5.]  ovk  qdvvaro.  The  want  of  ability  spoken  of  is  not 
absolute,  but  relative.  The  same  voice  which  could  still  the  tempests, 
could  anywhere  and  under  any  circumstances  have  commanded 
diseases  to  obey ;  but  in  most  cases  of  human  infirmity,  it  was  the 
Lord's  practice  to  require  faith  in  the  recipient  of  aid ;  and  that  being 
wanting,  the  help  could  not  be  given.  However,  from  what  follows, 
we  find  that  in  a  few  instances  it  did  exist,  and  the  help  was  given 
accordingly.  [6.]  £$av/j,a&.  This  need  not  surprise  us,  nor  be  con- 
strued otherwise  than  as  a  literal  description  of  the  Lord's  mind  :  in 
the  mystery  of  his  humanity,  as  he  was  compassed  by  humanity  — 
grew  in  wisdom  —  learned  obedience — knew  not  the  day  nor  the  hour 
(ch.  xiii.  32),  —  so  he  might  wonder  at  the  unbelief  of  his  countrymen. 
Kal  TxepLTjye,  see  Matt.  ix.  35.  —  Alford. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

CEREMONY   AND    MORALITY  —  CONCESSION   AND    COMPROMISE  —  THE 

SURPLICE BAPTISMS  CORBAN —  WHAT    IT    IS    THAT    DEFILES 

THE    SOUL  SEAL    OF    CHARACTER  THE    WOMAN'S     POSSESSED 

DAUGHTER  —  EPHPHATHA  —  ALL  THINGS  DONE  WELL. 

You  will  here  notice  a  fact  that  occurs  so  often  in 
the  intercourse  of  Christ  with  the  Pharisees,  that 
their  greatest  objections  to  the  conduct  of  the 
apostles  arose,  not  from  a  real  or  supposed  breach 
of  a  moral  law,  but  from  a  supposed  or  real  breach 
of  a  ceremonial  observance.  They  illustrate  in  this 
respect  a  great  fact  in  the  history  of  mankind,  that 
whenever  tradition  and  Scripture,  man's  word  and 
God's  Word,  are  placed  upon  the  same  level,  it  is 
only  for  a  day  that  they  can  remain  upon  that  level. 
The  great  result  comes  out,  that  no  man  can  serve 
two  such  masters  as  these ;  either  the  tradition  of 
man,  or  the  truth  of  God,  will  gain  the  ascendency. 
If  man  be  corrupt,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  he  will 
prefer  the  master  that  pleases  and  propitiates  his 
own  depraved  appetites,  and  hate  the  master  who 
rebukes  the  wrong  doing  with  the  voice  of  a  prophet, 
and  pronounces  it  to  be  evil.  And  hence,  whenever 
in  the  history  of  our  world  man's  tradition  and  God's 
"Word   have  been  placed  upon  the  same  level,  the 


MARK    VII.  113 

issue,  in  the  lapse  of  a  very  few  years,  has  been 
what  our  blessed  Lord  says  was  the  case  with  the 
Pharisees,  "  Full  well "  —  most  consistently  —  "  ye 
reject  the  commandment  of  God,  that  ye  may  keep 
your  own  tradition."  There  is  no  objection  to  obey- 
ing the  commandment  of  man  in  its  own  place  :  it 
is  only  when  that  commandment  is  made  an  essen- 
tial thing,  though  it  have  not  its  foundation  in  Scrip- 
ture, or  when  it  is  raised  to  supremacy  over  God's 
Word,  that  it  ought  to  be  resisted,  repudiated,  and 
rejected.  In  things  indifferent,  do  any  thing  that  will 
please  the  most ;  in  matters  ecclesiastical,  submit  to 
much  you  dislike,  if  only  it  will  secure  peace ;  but 
in  matters  of  essential  moment,  involving  the  glory 
of  God,  the  safety  of  the  soul,  the  ascendency  of 
vital  truth,  you  may  concede  the  largest  husk  of 
prejudice,  but  you  must  not  give  up  the  least  living 
seed  of  eternal  truth. 

The  great  complaint  of  the  Pharisees  on  this  occa- 
sion was,  that  the  disciples  ate  with  unwashen 
hands.  The  Pharisees,  it  seems,  were  in  the  habit 
of  "  oft  washing,"  or,  —  as  it  might  be  translated,  — 
strictly,  rigidly,  and  minutely  washing  their  hands, 
and  doing  it,  not  as  a  matter  of  comfort,  but  as  a 
matter  of  ecclesiastical  tradition.  They  might  have 
washed  their  hands  twenty  times  a  day,  as  a  matter 
of  personal  comfort,  —  there  could  be  no  harm  in 
that ;  but  when  they  said  that  because  they  washed 
their  hands,  everybody  else  ought  to  do  it  as  often, 
—  and  when  they  alleged  that  this  washing  of  hands, 
was  as  essential  a  matter  as  keeping  the  weightier 
matters  of  the  law,  —  then  a  thing  in  itself  most 
10* 


114  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

indifferent  became  the  just  ground  of  a  righteous 
protest  on  the  part  of  our  blessed  Lord,  and  his 
immediate  apostles.  So  in  the  present  day,  one 
should  bear  many  things  so  long  as  they  are  kept  in 
their  own  place ;  but  the  instant  they  are  raised  to  a 
prominence  that  does  not  belong  to  them,  then 
silence  is  connivance,  just  as  acquiescence  would  be 
treachery  to  God.  For  instance,  when  it  was  held 
by  certain  ministers  of  religion  that  they  ought  to 
preach  in  a  surplice,  and  not  in  a  black  gown,  as 
long  as  it  was  a  matter  of  taste  and  convenience, 
nobody  would  have  paid  the  least  attention  to  it,  but 
every  one  would  have  left  them  to  wear  what 
seemed  to  them  consistent  with  the  usage  of  a 
church,  a  nation,  or  an  age,  it  mattering  very  little  to 
the  doctrine  that  one  teaches  what  may  be  the  color 
of  the  robe  that  one  wears ;  but  when  the  robe  was 
put  forward  as  symbolical,  and  when  it  was  alleged 
that  sacraments  could  not  be  rightly  administered, 
nor  could  a  minister  preach  efficiently,  except  in  a 
particular  robe,  —  when  it  was  urged,  not  as  a  piece 
of  personal  and  ecclesiastical  etiquette,  but  as  a 
matter  of  vital  moment,  —  then  the  people  of  that 
church  did  most  correctly  when  they  protested 
against  it,  and  insisted  that  the  usage  to  which  they 
had  been  accustomed  for  many  years  should,  if 
changed,  be  changed  for  a  right  reason,  and  not  for 
a  Papal  and  Tractarian  one.  So  in  other  matters 
—  one  prefers  a  liturgy,  another  prefers  extemporane- 
ous prayer:  it  is  quite  right  that  in  these  matters 
each  should  gratify  his  preference ;  but  when  the  one 
who  uses  a  liturgy  says  you  cannot  pray  without  it, 


MARK    VII.  115 

—  or  when  the  one  who  uses  extemporaneous  prayer 
says  that  a  liturgy  is  necessarily  Popery,  —  then  you 
are  elevating  matters  of  detail  into  matters  of  vita1, 
importance ;  you  are  thinking  that  washen  or 
unwashen  hands  have  something  to  do  with  real 
religion;  you  are  forgetting  that  the  kingdom  of 
God  is  not  meat,  nor  drink,  but  righteousness,  and 
peace,  and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost. 

Now,  our  blessed  Lord,  evidently  in  the  spirit  of 
the  remarks  I  have  given,  tells  the  Pharisees  what 
was  the  logical  issue  of  the  course  that  they  had 
pursued  —  that  the  result  was,  that  they  fulfilled  the 
prophecy  of  Isaiah :  "  This  people  honoreth  me  with 
their  lips,  but  their  heart  is  far  from  me.  Howbeit 
in  vain  do  they  worship  me,  teaching  for  doctrines 
the  commandments  of  men.  For  laying  aside  the 
commandment  of  God,  ye  hold  the  tradition  of  men, 
as  the  washing  of  pots  and  cups"  —  outwardly,  in 
form  and  ceremony,  whilst  the  main  requisite  in  all 
acts  of  worship  was  wanting,  —  the  homage  and 
adoration  of  the  heart.  Then  our  Lord  says,  "  Full 
well  ye  reject  the  commandment  of  God,"  that  is, 
most  consistently,  most  naturally,  just  as  it  ever  will 
be  and  ever  has  been,  "teaching  for  doctrines  the 
commandments  of  men." 

One  other  thought  upon  this  passage,  and  it  is  on 
the  words  translated  here,  "  washing  of  pots  and 
cups,"  and  again,  "  washing  of  brazen  vessels,  and 
of  tables."  It  is  remarkable  that  the  Greek  word 
translated  "washing"  is  Bannafiovg.  Therefore,  I 
allege,  without  entering  at  length  into  a  matter  of 
mere   ecclesiastical   controversy,   we    have    in    this 


116  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

passage  proof  that  if  our  Baptist  brethren  be  right 
in  immersing  the  whole  body,  —  and  I  do  not  quar- 
rel with  them  upon  that  subject  at  all,  —  we  are  not 
wrong  in  asserting  and  insisting  that  baptism  is 
rightly  administered  by  sprinkling.  We  have  here 
tables  mentioned,  or,  as  it  should  be  translated, 
couches,  on  which  they  reclined  when  they  partook 
of  their  meals.  It  is  quite  absurd  to  suppose  that 
these  large  pieces  of  furniture,  twelve  feet  in  length, 
were  immersed  deeply  in  water.  We  know,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  that  hyssop  was  dipped  into  water, 
and  that  these  couches  were  sprinkled  ceremonially 
with  it.  Therefore,  the  inference  is  to  me  irresisti- 
ble, that  if  BaiTTUjfiovs  does  sometimes  mean  "  immer- 
sion," which  it  most  certainly  does,  it  means  also 
sometimes  "sprinkling."  And  if  so,  it  really  is  a 
discussion  not  worthy  of  being  protracted,  whether 
one  should  be  immersed  or  sprinkled,  as  long  as  we 
hold  this  vital  and  inner  requirement,  "  Except  a 
man  be  born  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  he  cannot  see  the 
kingdom  of  heaven." 

Our  Lord  then  rebukes  another  part  of  the  eccle- 
siastical tradition  which  prevailed  among  the  scribes 
and  Pharisees,  that  a  man  who  had  quarrelled  with 
his  parents  might  take  the  property  which  he  ought 
to  give  to  them  in  their  old  age  to  keep  them  from 
beggary,  and  consecrate  it  as  "corban,"  that  is,  some- 
thing devoted  to  God ;  and  then,  when  his  poor  aged 
parents  asked  him  for  bread,  his  answer  would  be, 
"  I  have  devoted  it,"  as  the  Roman  Catholic  would 
say,  "  to  pious  uses,  and  therefore  cannot  give  it  to 
so  profane  a  purpose  as  giving  bread  to  my  father 


MARK    VII.  117 

and  mother."  It  is  scarcely  possible  to  conceive  that 
ecclesiastical  depravity  could  rise  to  such  a  pitch  as 
to  make  such  a  devotion  to  pious  uses  an  apology 
for  withholding  what  was  due  to  those  connected 
with  us.  No  man  is  warranted  in  giving  to  pious 
uses  of  any  sort,  if  he  has  a  parent  who  wants  bread, 
or  a  relative  who  needs  shelter.  Charity  ought  to 
begin  at  home ;  only,  it  should  not  stop  there.  No 
pretext  of  the  claims  of  the  Church  or  the  ministry 
will  avail  in  the  sight  of  God  as  an  excuse  for  refus- 
ing to  your  children,  parents,  or  relatives,  bread  when 
they  stand  in  need  of  it. 

Our  Lord  then  explained  to  his  disciples  what  it 
was  that  was  really  polluting  in  the  sight  of  God. 
He  said,  it  is  not  that  which  a  man  eats  that  pollutes 
him,  but  that  which  a  man  thinks,  says,  and  does. 
It  is  not  fasting  or  feasting  that  affects  a  man's 
moral  character;  because,  if  you  should  fast  from 
Easter  to  Easter,  you  punish  the  organ  that  is  not 
at  fault,  and  do  not  touch  the  organ  that  is  really  at 
fault,  that  is,  the  heart.  "  For  from  within,  out  of 
the  heart  of  men,  proceed  evil  thoughts,  adulteries, 
fornications,  murders."  These  are  the  things  that 
nestle  in  the  human  heart,  and  that  really  corrupt  it 
by  their  presence ;  and  any  process  which  does  not 
mortify  these  does  not  really  purify  the  man.  But 
the  fact  is,  we  have  all  a  great  deal  of  the  Papal 
leaven,  —  we  are  all  most  ready  to  visit  the  body  for 
the  sins  and  transgressions  of  the  soul.  It  is  so 
much  easier  to  mortify  the  flesh,  than  it  is  to  mortify 
the  lust  of  the  flesh.  It  is  so  much  easier  to  fast  for 
a  day,  than  to  deny  oneself  a  darling  sinful  indul- 


118  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

gence.  It  is  so  much  easier  to  do  penance  by  climb- 
ing with  bare  feet  a  rugged  hill,  or  walking  with 
pebbles  in  the  shoes,  than  it  is  to  repent  of  sin  in  the 
sight  of  God.  For  one  that  you  can  prevail  upon  to 
renounce  the  evil  that  nestles  in  the  heart,  you  may 
prevail  with  great  success  upon  thousands  to  sub- 
mit to  any  bodily  inconvenience.  And  hence  the 
masterly  conception  of  the  Romish  religion,  that  ever 
keeps  you  thinking  of  the  body  and  its  suffering  as 
atonement  and  expiation  for  the  sins  of  the  soul; 
and  that  leads  you  to  think  that  when  you  have 
died  with  what  are  called  venial  sins  unforgiven,  a 
turn  in  purgatory  for  a  year  or  two,  a  little  suffering 
in  the  body,  will  burn  out  all  the  sins  of  the  soul, 
and  all  will  be  right,  and  pure,  and  happy,  just  as  if 
you  had  never  sinned.  Let  us  never  forget  that  the 
way  to  eradicate  sin  is  to  begin  at  the  centre.  It  is 
the  heart  that  is  wrong  —  God  alone  can  change  it ; 
but  he  waits  ready  to  do  so,  as  soon  as  he  is  fer- 
vently, honestly,  and  from  the  heart,  entreated  to 
do  it. 

We  then  read  that  a  certain  woman  came  to 
Jesus  who  had  a  daughter  possessed  of  a  devil. 
Plainly  that  was  not  a  bodily  disease,  for  we  notice 
at  the  close  of  the  chapter  a  bodily  ailment  as  a 
thing  totally  distinct  from  a  demoniacal  possession. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  Satan  has  innumerable 
legions  of  fallen  fiends ;  and  Scripture  tells  us  that 
he  and  his  are  ever  busy  contaminating,  corrupting, 
and  misleading.  And  there  is  nothing  at  all  con- 
trary to  what  we  should  expect  in  the  fact  that  one 
of  these  —  a   devil,   not    Satan   the   prince   of  the 


MARK    VII.  119 

devils  —  should  enter  into  the  human  mind,  and  take 
up  his  abode  there.  They  do  so  now,  not  in  this 
shape,  but  in  other  shapes;  and  nothing  seems  to 
me  more  awful  than  that  a  fallen  spirit  should  have 
direct  contact  with  the  human  mind,  suggesting  the 
evil,  suppressing  the  associations  of  the  good,  and 
tempting  to  sin  against  God  and  against  mankind. 

When  this  Gentile  woman, — for  the  Jews  called 
all  people  Greeks,  who  were  not  of  Moses,  —  "a 
Syrophenician  by  nation,"  besought  him,  Jesus  said 
to  her,  evidently  not  to  grieve  or  tantalize  her,  but  to 
elicit  her  faith  in  him,  "  Let  the  children,"  that  is,  the 
Jews,  "  first  be  filled :  for  it  is  not  meet  to  take  the 
bread  that  belongs  to  the  nation  to  whom  I  have 
primarily  come,  and  to  give  it  to  those  that  that 
nation  rightly  or  wrongly  calls  dogs."  The  Jews 
called  themselves  the  clean  nation,  and  all  the*  rest 
of  the  world  unclean ;  and  as  the  dog,  strangely 
enough,  is  referred  to  in  Scripture  seldom  otherwise 
than  as  an  unclean  or  impure  animal,  the  Jews 
called  all  nations  other  than  themselves  "  dogs." 
That  explains  what  the  apostle  says,  "  Beware  of 
dogs."  He  does  not  there  mean  Gentiles,  but, 
beware  of  those  that  are  evil,  because  "  evil  com- 
munications corrupt  good  manners,"  or  morals. 
When  He  had  told  her  this,  which  was  apparently 
a  severe  way  of  saying,  "  I  must  feed  Israel  before 
the  Gentiles,"  she  was  not  repulsed ;  but,  having 
a  faith  that  overcame  mountains  and  dissolved 
obstructions,  she  pressed  closer  to  him,  and  said, 
"  This  is  very  true ;  but  I  do  not  ask  you,  blessed 
Lord,  to  withhold  a  morsel  from  the  Jew,  in  order 


120  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

to  give  me  something:  for  if  the  dogs  that  are 
below  the  table  are  not  permitted  to  eat  of  the  food  on 
the  table,  they  are  yet  allowed  to  pick  up  the  crumbs 
that  are  under  it.  Therefore,  blessed  Lord,  give  me, 
not  the  bread — that  would  be  too  much  to  ask — 
but  give  me  the  crumbs  that  fall  under  the  tab]e ; 
these,  dog  as  1  am,  I  may  be  entitled  to  accept." 
And  Jesus,  seeing  that  his  first  words  only  drew  out 
the  stronger  faith  of  the  applicant,  said,  "  For  this 
saying" — because  you  have  shown  such  unflinch- 
ing, unwavering  faith  — "  go  thy  way:  the  devil  is 
gone  out  of  thy  daughter.  And  when  she  was 
come  to  her  house,  she  found  the  devil  gone  out." 

We  then  read  of  the  cure  of  a  deaf  man  by  Jesus 
putting  his  fingers  into  his  ears,  spitting,  and  touch- 
ing his  tongue ;  "  and  looking  up  to  heaven,  he 
sighed,  and  saith  unto  him,  Ephphatha,  that  is,  Be 
opened."  I  noticed  on  reading  the  chapter  in  the 
morning  (Exodus  xv.),  containing  the  account  of  the 
tree  that  was  cast  into  the  bitter  waters  of  Marah, 
that  Moses  might,  in  obedience  to  God's  command, 
have  healed  the  waters  simply  by  a  word,  but  God 
made  him  take  a  branch,  and  cast  it  into  them.  So 
here,  Jesus  might  have  unstopped  the  deaf  ears,  and 
unstrung  the  dumb  tongue,  simply  by  a  word ;  but 
instead  of  doing  so,  he  used  a  sacramental  sign,  an 
outward  and  visible  pledge,  that  it  was  his  power 
transferred  from  himself  into  the  deaf  ear,  and  into 
the  dumb  mouth,  that  enabled  the  deaf  to  hear,  and 
the  dumb  to  speak. 

The  words,  "  He  hath  done  all  things  well,"  are 
the  attestation  of  the  crowd  assembled  together  on 


MARK    VII.  121 

the  streets  of  Jerusalem,  and  witnessing  the  deeds 
of  power,  the  miracles  of  mercy  and  beneficence, 
which  Jesus  did.  It  is  remarkable  to  notice,  in  the 
history  of  him  who  lived  as  never  man  lived,  and 
spoke  as  never  man  spoke,  and  did  what  never  man 
did,  that  sometimes  his  bitterest  enemies  were  the 
first  to  acknowledge  the  magnificence  of  his  doings, 
and  sometimes  his  friends  were  backward  in  pro- 
claiming the  excellence  of  Him  who  ever  did,  and 
now  ever  does,  all  things  well.  It  was  the  Scribes 
and  Pharisees  who  said,  "  He  saved  others,"  though 
the  inference  that  they  drew  was  most  unjust, 
because  they  had  not  light  to  see  its  meaning,  or  its 
mystery,  "  Himself  he  cannot  save."  And  Pilate, 
when  he  had  washed  his  hands,  was  constrained  to 
say  of  him  who  was  placed  at  his  bar  as  a  criminal, 
"  I  find  no  fault  in  him."  But  in  the  instance  that 
is  now  before  us,  it  was  those  who  shared  the  riches 
of  his  beneficence  who  proclaimed  the  beautiful 
announcement,  "  He  hath  done  all  things  well ; " 
and  they  gave  the  grounds  of  that  judgment,  when 
they  added  to  the  proclamation  of  it,  "  He  maketh 
the  blind  to  see,  and  the  deaf  to  hear."  These  facts 
are  still  on  the  page  of  history ;  the  monuments  of 
this  mercy  are  amid  the  shining  crowds  of  the  sky ; 
and  thus,  time  with  its  thousand  tongues,  and 
eternity  with  its  own  emphatic  one,  conspire  in 
proclaiming  a  truth  that  ever  has  been,  and  ever 
will  be  actual,  "  He  doeth,  and  hath  done,  all 
things  well." 

It  is  also  worthy  of  notice  that  the  recipients  of 
the  distinguishing  mercy  of  Jesus  did  not  say,  as 
11 


122  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

the  more  educated,  but  far  more  depraved  Pharisees 
alleged,  "  He  casteth  out  devils  by  Beelzebub,  the 
prince  of  the  devils."  They  did  not  say,  as  modern 
Christians  are  too  prone  to  say,  "  It  was  the  medi- 
cine that  healed ; "  but  they  traced  the  links  along 
the  chain  of  beneficence,  and  saw  that  they  all  were 
held  in  the  hand  of  Him  who  then  did,  and  now 
does,  all  things  well.  When  we  are  healed  of  a 
disease,  it  is  as  much  a  miracle  as  it  was  when 
Jesus  touched  the  deaf  ear,  and  said,  "  Ephphatha," 
Be  opened.  Why  is  there  virtue  in  the  medicine  ? 
who  gave  it  its  mysterious  power  ?  The  difference 
is  only  this,  that  now  God  works  with  means,  then 
he  worked  without  them  ;  but  whether  healed  with 
or  without  them,  we  should  look  above  the  medi- 
cine, and  beyond  the  physician,  to  the  Lord  Jehovah, 
who  healeth  all  our  diseases. 

But  if  no  human  voice  in  that  crowd  had  been 
raised  to  acknowledge  Jesus  as  the  healer  of  diseases, 
the  blind,  who  saw  the  stars  of  the  sky  and  the 
flowers  of  the  earth  for  the  first  time  ;  the  deaf,  who 
heard  the  sweet  sounds  of  an  affectionate  voice  they 
never  heard  before ;  the  withered  limbs,  that  were 
restored  to  more  than  their  pristine  vigor ;  the  empty 
graves  ;  the  dead,  who  mingled  again  with  the  com- 
pany of  the  living;  could  have  all  stood  forth,  and 
proclaimed,  "  We  are  witnesses  that  He  hath  done 
all  things  well." 


CHAPTER   VII.   37. 

PKAISE    OF    JESUS  —  EXCELLENCY    OF    WORKING — CREATION  — 
PROVIDENCE  — GRACE. 

The  exclamation,  "  He  hath  done  all  things  well," 
was  the  language  of  adoring  gratitude  and  praise. 
It  was  a  leaf  from  the  Psalms  of  David.  It  was  a 
text  from  the  103d  Psalm,  "  Bless  the  Lord,  O  my 
soul,  and  forget  not  all  his  mercies."  And  if  we  feel 
that  God  heals  us;  if  we  believe  that  any  blessing 
that  we  have  is  a  leaf  from  the  tree  of  life,  let  not 
the  crowd  rival  us  in  the  expression  of  gratitude  and 
praise  to  the  right  Author,  but  let  us  also  praise  him 
for  his  goodness,  saying,  "  He  only  hath  done  all 
things  well."  Blessings  will  not  be  long  possessed 
that  are  not  deeply  appreciated ;  he  will  not  be  a 
long  possessor,  or  a  happy  possessor,  who  is  not  a 
thankful  possessor.  Unacknowledged  mercies  are 
always  the  sharpest  judgments. 

By  way  of  illustrating  these  words,  "  He  hath 
done  all  things  well,"  let  "me  notice,  first,  Jesus  as 
the  Maker  of  all.  One  sometimes  does  not  realize 
this.  The  hands  stretched  upon  the  cross  created 
the  vast  universe.  All  things,  says  John,  were  made 
by  Christ,  and  without  Christ  was  not  any  thing  made 
that  was  made.     I  have  often  thought  this  one  of 


124  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

the  most  touching  pleas  that  a  Christian  can  make. 
If  you  cannot  say, "  Blessed  Jesus,  thou  hast  redeemed 
me,  therefore  bless  me,"  the  worst  may  say  in  the 
darkest  shadow  of  his  life,  and  when  he  drinks  its 
bitterest  cup,  "  Blessed  Lord,  thou  hast  made  me ; 
thou  hatest  nothing  that  thou  hast  made  ;  remake 
me,  restamp  the  image  I  have  lost,  retune  the  instru- 
ment thou  madest  at  the  first,  restore  me,  O  thou  by 
whom  all  things  were  made."  It  is  a  beautiful 
thought,  that  Jesus  is  the  Maker  of  all.  There  is 
not  a  star  that  shines  from  the  depth  of  the  firma- 
ment above  us,  that  received  not  its  brilliancy  from 
the  Bright  and  the  Morning  Star;  there  is  not  a 
flower  that  beautifies  the  earth,  from  the  first  prim- 
rose of  spring  to  the  last  rose  of  summer,  that  His 
breath  did  not  give  fragrance  to,  and  His  touch  all 
its  exquisite  beauty  and  its  lasting  tints.  There  is 
not  a  stone  or  a  pebble,  or  a  creature,  from  the  angel 
that  is  before  the  throne  to  the  emmet  that  the  micro- 
scope can  scarcely  detect,  that  Jesus  did  not  make. 
He  made  all  things  ;  and  more  than  that,  He  made 
all  things  well.  His  own  attestation  is  my  proof, 
-"And  God  saw  that  it  was  very  good."  When  the 
earth  came  from  his  hands,  it  was  like  a  brilliant 
diamond,  on  which  the  name  of  the  maker  was 
deeply  and  beautifully  engraven,  and  from  which  the 
image  of  God  was  brilliantly  reflected ;  and  wherever 
in  the  earth  you  detect  a  flaw,  —  wherever  in  creation 
you  find  an  imperfection,  never  forget  that  God  did 
not  make  that.  Sere  leaves  were  not  made  by  God ; 
gray  hairs,  wrinkles,  old  age,  headaches,  heart-aches, 
all  the  ills  that  flesh  is  heir  to,  God  never  made. 


MARK    VII.  125 

You  ask  whence  they  came.  That  has  perplexed 
many  in  every  age :  there  is  but  one  solution  :  sin 
entered,  and  death  by  sin ;  and  all  these  accom- 
paniments of  it  shall  be  excluded  when  Christ  shall 
create  all  things  anew,  and  pronounce  the  new  world 
better  than  the  old ;  and  when  angels  and  men  shall 
sing  in  one  grand  anthem,  "  He  hath  made  all  things 
well." 

But  Jesus  is  not  only  the  Maker  of  all,  he  is  also 
the  Ruler  of  all.  While  such  elements  as  I  have 
alluded  to  have  entered  into  the  world  he  will  not 
allow  them  to  go  beyond  his  control.  I  do  not  think 
it  is  always  right  to  speak  of  God  as  sending  disease 
or  calamity;  I  would  like  rather,  and  I  think  it  is 
not  less  scriptural,  to  view  the  bounding  heart,  not 
the  broken  one,  as  sent  by  God.  I  would  rather  see 
Him  in  all  that  is  bright,  beautiful,  and  beneficent,  than 
in  all  that  is  dark,  sombre,  and  unhappy.  But  while 
God  may  not  send  calamities,  it  is  no  less  true  that 
he  controls  them.  Does  your  health  waste  away, 
and  your  beauty,  in  the  language  of  the  Psalmist, 
consume  as  a  moth  ?  It  is  that  you  may  lift  up 
your  hearts  to  something  more  glorious  and  endur- 
ing, and  see  in  the  worst  that  betides  you  something 
done  well,  and  working  well  for  you.  Does  a 
bereavement  take  away  those  that  you  love  ?  Does 
death  darken  the  sunshine  that  irradiated  your 
threshold,  and  brightened  your  happy  home  ?  It  is 
well ;  it  is  God  taking  the  element  of  evil  your  sins 
introduced,  and  making  that  element  of  evil  the  cup 
that  overflows  with  beneficence,  mercy,  and  love.  If 
He  has  broken  the  cistern  from  which  you  drank  too 
11* 


126  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

passionately,  it  is  that  you  may  appeal  to  the  foun- 
tain. If  He  has  removed  the  sun  that  shed  down 
his  splendor  upon  your  life,  it  is  that  as  the  night 
comes  in  and  conceals  the  one  sun  that  is  above, 
and  the  earth  that  is  beneath,  it  may  unveil  to  you 
10,000  suns  in  the  sky  of  yet  richer  splendor.  Is  the 
gourd  that  you  almost  adored  cut  down  ?  It  is  that 
you  may  leave  the  gourd,  and  seek  a  shadow 
beneath  the  tree  of  righteousness,  whose  leaves  are 
for  the  healing  of  the  nations.  There  is  not  a  Chris- 
tian that  on  his  last  bed  will  not  be  constrained,  if 
he  take  an  impartial  retrospect  of  all  the  past,  to 
bless  God  as  much  for  his  dark  days  as  for  his  bright 
ones,  — as  heartily  for  his  bitter  cups  as  for  his  sweet 
ones ;  and  he  will  learn  that  when  God  dried  up  the 
streams  on  the  hill,  it  was  only  that  he  might  go  to 
the  richer  valleys  below,  and  find  unseen  a  fountain 
so  deep,  that  it  cannot  be  frozen  by  winter's  frosts, 
and  so  overshadowed  by  the  everlasting  hills,  that  it 
never  can  be  evaporated  by  the  heat  of  the  summer 
sun.  Of  all  we  shall  be  constrained  to  say,  "  He 
hath  done  all  things  well." 

And  what  happens  to  us  as  individuals  is  no  less 
true  in  the  government  of  nations  and  the  world. 
We  sometimes  think,  when  we  hear  of  convulsions 
in  states,  that  the  world  is  going  to  pieces,  —  that 
God  has  let  go  the  reins,  and  that  the  mirror  of 
creation  will  be  dashed  to  fragments.  It  is  not  so. 
God  is  doing  all  well;  and  when  the  earthquake 
shall  have  ceased  its  vibrations,  we  shall  be  con- 
strained to  see  what  we  could  not  see  in  the  process, 
but  what  we  find  in  the  result,  that  God  our  Saviour 
hath  done  all  things  well. 


MARK    VII.  127 

But,  let  me  look  at  Christ  as  acting  in  redemp- 
tion; and  here  it  is  almost  supererogation  to  say, 
He  hath  done  all  things  well.  Has  he  made  an 
atonement  ?  This  he  did  perfectly,  and  once  for  all, 
when  he  made  an  end  of  sin,  and  brought  in  ever- 
lasting righteousness.  He  has  conquered  death  and 
the  grave  so  completely,  that  the  dying  saint  can 
sing,  "  O  death,  where  is  thy  sting  ?  O  grave,  where 
is  thy  victory  ?  "  He  sends  the  Spirit  truly  to  all 
that  seek  him,  to  make  them  fit  for  heaven.  Is  it, 
again,  the  institution  of  a  Christian  ministry,  or 
Christian  sacraments?  This  Christ  hath  also  done 
well.  They  both  are  guides  to  Him ;  and  should 
lead  you  to  the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away 
the  sin  of  the  world.  And  his  presence  with  his 
Church;  is  that  real?  That  also  is  done  well. 
Why  has  the  bush  blazed  on  every  hill,  and  yet 
never  been  consumed  ?  It  is  because  Christ  has  ful- 
filled the  promise  that  he  made,  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you 
alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world." 

How  often  do  we  fail  to  realize  all  this !  And  why 
so  ?  Because  we  judge  of  things  often  without 
God.  Exclude  God  from  all  providential  history, 
and  it  is  the  extinction  of  the  sun  from  the  firma- 
ment,—  the  exhaustion  of  gravitation  from  the  uni- 
verse itself.  Again,  we  judge  too  much  from  sense. 
We  say,  what  tastes  bitter  must  prove  in  its  effects 
bitter.  But  the  most  bitter  draught  may  be  the  most 
precious  medicine.  And  again,  we  often  misjudge 
God's  doings  by  judging  too  prematurely.  We  see 
but  the  beginning  of  God's  great  plan  ;  we  do  not 
see  the  whole  before  us ;  and  would  it  be  rational  to 


128  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

judge  of  the  beauty  of  a  palace  upon  the  inspection 
of  a  single  brick  ?  Let  us  rest  in  the  Lord,  and  be 
patient ;  and  we  shall  see  that  what  feels  most  pain- 
ful is  but  another  proof  that  He  hath  done  all  things 
well.  But  again,  we  often  judge  selfishly.  Instead 
of  regarding  the  whole  universe  as  God's  province, 
we  think  each  himself  to  be  the  great  centre,  and 
look  at  every  thing  in  the  light  of  our  own  well- 
being.  Let  us  never  do  this ;  let  us  not  rashly  pro- 
nounce verdicts  on  the  doings  of  God,  but  conclude, 
in  the  language  of  my  text,  what  all  creation  will 
evolve  as  the  result  of  all  his  dispensations  in  indi- 
vidual cases,  in  social,  national,  and  universal  govern- 
ment, "  He  hath  done  all  things  well." 


Note.  —  These  Bairnc/iot,  as  applied  to  k1iv£>v,  —  meaning  proba- 
bly here  conches  (triclinia)  used  at  meals,  — were  certainly  not  immer- 
sions, but  sprinklings  or  effusions  of  water. 

[36.]  See  ch.  i.  4,  5.  [37.]  KakCog  -kLv.  ttett.  So  "Kiivra,  oca  inoirjoe, 
nalaXiav,  Gen.  i.  31.  This  work  was  properly  and  worthily  compared 
with  that  first  one  of  creation,  —  it  was  the  same  beneficence  which 
prompted  and  the  same  power  that  wrought  it.  — Alford. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

jesus  ministers  to  bodily  wants  —  physical  and  spiritual 
blessings  connected — miracle  of  loaves — great  pacts 
and  simple  descriptions  —  pharisees  not  satisfied  — 
leaven  —  blind  man  cured  —  redemptive  nature  of 
Christ's  miracles  —  Christ's  prediction  of  his  death  — 
a  cross  first — peter,  satan,  and  rock  —  our  cross the 

SOUL. 

We  have,  first  of  all,  in  the  chapter  I  have  read, 
the  record  of  a  miracle,  also  given  in  the  Gospel 
according  to  St.  Matthew,  perhaps  at  greater  length. 
Jesus  feeds  a  multitude,  disproportionately  to  sight 
and  sense,  with  a  few  loaves  and  fishes.  He  had 
compassion  on  the  multitude  because  of  their  natural 
and  bodily  wants.  To  these  bodily  wants,  as  well 
as  to  spiritual  necessities,  he  ministered  on  every 
occasion  that  occurred  in  the  providence  of  God, 
during  the  whole  course  of  his  ministrations  through- 
out the  land  of  Palestine.  And  it  is  a  very  interest- 
ing and  blessed  thought,  that  whilst  the  safety  of  the 
soul  is  not  too  high  for  Jesus  to  secure,  the  lowest 
pang  of  the  poor  perishing  body  is  not  beneath  his 
blessed  notice,  sympathy,  and  inspection.  You  must 
also  have  noticed,  in  the  course  of  our  Lord's  minis- 
try, that  whilst  he  was  always  and  everywhere  alive 
to  the  spiritual  necessities  of  the  soul,  he  never  failed 


130  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

to  make  a  ministration  to  the  wants  of  the  body  a 
stronger  reason  for  the  opening  of  the  mind  to  the  les- 
sons that  he  taught,  and  the  heart  to  the  impressions 
that  he  desired  to  make  upon  it.  Jesus,  throughout 
all  his  ministry,  accompanied  spiritual  with  physical 
benefits  and  blessings.  And  I  am  quite  sure  of  this, 
that  at  the  present  day,  if  the  Church  of  Christ 
would  also  look  more  extensively  after  the  physical 
well-being  of  those  that  are  around  it,  its  efforts  to 
compass  their  spiritual  well-being  would  not  be  the 
less  successful.  There  are  certain  physical  things 
that  are  positive  obstructions  to  the  reception  of  the 
truth.  Let  any  one  zealous  for  the  salvation  of 
souls  go  into  some  of  the  districts  directly  east  of 
this  church ;  let  him  go  into  places  where  the  light 
of  heaven  can  scarcely  penetrate — where  no  warmth 
is  given  from  the  hearth  —  where  there  is  no  home, 
nor  any  of  its  decencies  and  comforts  —  where  there 
is  nothing  but  squalid  misery,  wretchedness,  want, 
and  famine,  —  and  I  think  he  would  then  discover 
what  I  am  convinced  of,  that  the  first  thing  there  to 
be  done  is,  not  merely  to  say,  "  Believe  on  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,"  but  accept  a  blanket  to  keep  out  the 
cold,  food  for  the  hungry,  and  some  of  the  decencies 
of  life  for  those  who  are  utterly  destitute  of  them. 
It  has  been  very  much  overlooked,  but  it  cannot  be 
overlooked  long,  that  the  physical  well-being  of  the 
poor  is  a  preliminary  and  Baptist-like  step  to  their 
spiritual  instruction  and  knowledge  in  the  Gospel  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  These  two,  in  the  case  of 
our  blessed  Lord,  always  went  together,  the  one  the 
pioneer  to  the  other  —  nay,  it  was  when  he  had  done 


MARK    VIII.  131 

the  greatest  good  to  the  bodies  of  men  that  he  seized 
the  beneficence  th'ey  had  just  tasted,  and  made  that 
the  pedestal  of  a  spiritual  and  everlasting  truth  that 
their  sonls  greatly  needed.  Here  he  first  fed  the 
hungry,  and  he  then  enlightened  and  instructed  the 
soul. 

When  he  spoke  of  giving  food  to  such  a  multitude 
in  the  desert,  his  disciples, — judging,  as  man  is  ever 
prone  to  judge,  only  by  what  they  could  see,  touch, 
and  handle,  —  asked,  "From  whence  can  a  man 
satisfy  these  men  with  bread  here  in  the  wilder- 
ness?" not  recollecting  the  power  that  Jesus  had 
shown,  or  the  instances  of  Almighty  beneficence  that 
he  had  repeatedly  exhibited.  The  Redeemer,  with 
all  the  quiet  that  is  the  evidence  of  power,  —  with 
nothing  of  the  excitement  which  indicates  perplexity, 
—  asked  them,  "  How  many  loaves  have  ye  ?  And 
they  said,  Seven."  He  then  commanded  the  people 
to  sit  down  on  the  ground,  simply  for  convenience, 
and  he  took  the  seven  loaves,  and  gave  thanks,  and 
brake,  and  set  them  before  them ;  and  all  the  people 
that  were  assembled  there  found  in  these  loaves 
enough,  and  the  disciples  afterwards  a  surplus  in  his 
beneficence,  for  they  gathered  up  seven  baskets  of 
the  fragments  that  remained. 

Now,  here  we  have  one  of  those  stupendous 
miracles  that  are  so  simply  told,  that  we  are  apt  to 
lose  sight  of  some  portion  of  their  sublimity;  and 
it  has  always  struck  me  as  one  of  the  indirect,  but 
not  least  cogent,  proofs  of  the  inspiration  of  the 
sacred  penmen,  that  they  tell  grand  feats  so  simply. 
If  a  mere  human  historian  had  been  recording  such 


132  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

a  prodigy  as  this,  he  would  have  exhausted,  if  his 
taste  had  not  been  very  good,  language  of  its  bom- 
bast ;  he  would  have  called  into  aid  expressions  of 
admiration  and  wonder;  and  he  would  have  been 
exuberant  in  poetical  and  grand  descriptions  of  a 
miracle  which  would  have  overwhelmed  him  with 
its  magnitude  and  greatness.  But  the  sacred  histo- 
rian, as  if  he  had  dipped  his  pen  in  the  light  of  Him 
who  did  the  miracle,  —  as  if  he  were  writing  under 
the  inspiration,  as  he  was,  of  Him  whose  deeds  of 
beneficence  he  was  recording, — tells  the  story  with 
that  artless  simplicity  which  proves  how  true  it  is, 
and  which  shows  indirectly  how  the  penman  was 
guided  and  inspired  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God. 

We  then  read  that  the  Pharisees  came  forth,  and 
began  to  question  him,  seeking  a  sign  from  heaven. 
You  naturally  say,  What  sign  could  they  want 
additional  to  this?  If  ever  there  were  the  creden- 
tials of  a  present  God,  surely  such  a  miracle  as  this 
was  not  the  least.  What  could  they  want  to  prove 
that  Omnipotent  power  was  here,  beyond  the  crea- 
tion of  food  for  thousands  out  of  loaves  that  were 
adequate  only  for  a  handful  ?  But  they  wanted  a 
sign  from  heaven,  not  because  they  desired  to  be 
convinced,  but,  we  are  told,  because  they  wanted  to 
tempt,  grieve,  ensnare,  or  provoke  Jesus.  The  fact 
is,  when  men  have  onee  made  up  their  minds  not 
to  be  persuaded,  they  are  unconvinceable.  It  is  a 
very  lamentable  fact,  and  one  that  reflects  very  little 
credit  upon  our  kind  —  but  how  often  do  you  see 
in  places  where  debates  are  carried  on,  whether  in 
the  General  Assembly  of  the  Church,  or  in  the  Par- 


MARK    VIII.  133 

liament  of  the  land,  that  where  certain  numbers  of 
persons  have  made  up  their  minds  upon  any  given 
subject,  you  may  speak  with  almost  Demosthenic 
eloquence,  and  yet  you  will  fail  to  move  them ! 
You  affect  their  judgments,  not  their  votes.  These 
Pharisees  had  made  up  their  minds  as  to  a  conclu- 
sion, arising  more  from  their  own  passions  and 
interest  than  from  sober  conviction;  and  all  the 
miracles  that  Jesus  could  do  were  utterly  ineffective 
to  convince  them.  If  he  had  made  the  heavens 
blaze  with  unearthly  splendor,  and  the  earth  glow 
with  the  reflection  of  the  skies,  and  shown  them 
ten  thousand  signs,  —  in  fact,  if  they  believed  not 
Moses  and  the  prophets,  neither  would  they  have 
believed  if  one  were  to  rise  from  the  dead. 

Our  blessed  Lord  warned  his  disciples  of  what  he 
here  called  the  leaven  of  the  scribes,  the  Pharisees, 
and  the  Herodians ;  but  it  seems  that  the  disciples, 
who  had  heard  so  much,  and  ought  to  have  been 
more  enlightened,  misunderstood  him,  and  thought, 
as  we  gather  from  a  parallel  passage,  that  he  spoke 
of  literal  leaven.  Jesus  then  argues  with  them: 
"  Why  reason  ye,  because  ye  have  no  bread  ?  per- 
ceive ye  not  yet,  neither  understand  ?  have  ye  your 
heart  yet  hardened  ?  "  It  was  the  language,  not  of 
passion,  but  of  quiet,  gentle,  yet  faithful  rebuke. 
They  ought  to  have  known  the  formulas  of  his 
speech,  and  the  frequent  figures  that  he  employed, 
in  order  to  convey  spiritual  and  instructive  lessons. 
But,  strange  enough,  when  man  has  been  taught, 
he  needs  to  be  taught  again ;  and  thanks  be  to  God 
that  he  does  teach  us,  line  upon  line,  and  precept 
12 


134  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

upon  precept ;  here  a  little,  and  there  a  little,  —  the 
Teacher  never  wearied,  though  the  pupil  so  often 
fails  to  improve  the  lessons  that  he  hears  from  him. 

Next  follows  another  miracle,  that  of  the  blind 
man  having  his  eyes  opened.  It  may  be  asked, 
Why  did  Jesus  touch  and  anoint  the  eye  in  the 
way  that  he  did  ?  might  he  not  have  simply  spoken 
the  word,  and  the  blind  eyes  would  have  been  acces- 
sible to  light  ?  I  answer,  in  every  miracle  that  Jesus 
did,  there  was  always  a  link  visibly  connecting  the 
Doer  of  the  miracle  with  the  subject  of  the  miracle ; 
so  that,  whether  it  was  a  word,  or  a  touch,  or  any 
thing  else,  it  might  always  be  seen  that  the  miracle 
was  done  directly  and  unmistakably  by  the  imme- 
diate power  and  agency  of  our  blessed  Lord.  And 
when  He  had  thus  opened  the  eyes  of  the  blind 
man,  the  blind  man  said  that  he  saw  men  like 
trees,  that  is,  misty  —  the  human  figure  undefined  — 
rather  in  masses  than  sharply  and  clearly  developed, 
— just  like  trees,  only  with  the  peculiarity  that  they 
seemed  trees  walking.  Jesus  then  touched  his  eyes 
again,  and  he  saw  every  man  clearly.  He  then  told 
him  not  to  tell  any  one  in  the  town ;  for  what  rea- 
son I  do  not  know,  except  probably  not  to  excite 
the  feelings  of  the  people  at  that  time,  for  purposes 
and  from  a  foresight  peculiar  to  himself.  This, 
however,  we  may  notice,  that  an  ordinary  man 
doing  wonders,  actuated  by  false  motives,  would 
have  been  too  glad  to  spread  what  he  did  every- 
where; but  you  will  notice  often  that  when  Jesus 
did  the  greatest  miracles,  attested  by  competent  wit- 
nesses and  of  sufficient  number,  he  was  content  to 


MARK     VIII.  135 

have  it  done  in  silence  and  retirement.  The  time, 
he  knew,  would  soon  come  when  what  was  done  in 
secret  would  be  proclaimed  upon  the  housetop. 

You  will  notice  in  all  the  miracles  of  Jesus,  what 
I  think  is  deserving  of  special  study,  their  redemp- 
tive character.  Every  miracle  that  Jesus  did  was 
not  a  mere  freak,  if  I  might  use  the  expression,  of 
power;  it  was  not  a  mere  proof  that  God  had 
power,  or  simply  a  proof  that  God  had  beneficence ; 
but  in  almost  every  instance  it  was  elevating  man, 
the  subject  of  the  miracle,  out  of  the  abnormal  state 
in  which  sin  had  placed  him,  into  the  original  and 
happy  state  in  which  he  was  first  created.  All 
these  acts  of  Jesus  were  in  their  place  foresigns  of 
that  day  when  all  blind  eyes  shall  opened,  and  all 
deaf  ears  shall  be  unstopped,  and  when  the  lame 
shall  leap  like  the  hart  and  the  roe,  and  there 
shall  be  no  more  sickness,  nor  sorrow,  nor  sighing. 
Every  miracle  that  Jesus  did  was  an  earnest,  a 
pledge,  and  a  token  of  that  day  when  he  shall  wave 
his  hand  over  all  creation,  and  all  things  shall  be 
made  new,  and  a  better  genesis  shall  dawn  upon 
the  earth  than  originally  passed  upon  it  when  God 
pronounced  all  very  good. 

Jesus  then  predicted  his  own  approaching  death 
and  resurrection  ;  and  this  was  a  very  important  pre- 
diction, because  it  showed  that  his  death  did  not 
come  upon  him  unawares,  that  he  clearly  foresaw  it, 
that  he  was  not  surprised  into  Calvary,  but  that  he 
anticipated  a  cross  as  the  conclusion  of  his  painful 
and  sorrowing  pilgrimage  upon  earth.  But  when 
he  thus  preached  the  great  cardinal  truth  of  Chris- 


136  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

tianity,  we  find  that  Peter,  ever  rash  to  speak  and 
often  to  do  what  was  wrong,  took  him,  and  began  to 
rebuke  him,  as  if  it  were  not  meet  that  he  should  die 
—  as  if  there  could  be  a  crown  without  a  cross.  But 
what  Peter  did  to  Jesus,  we  are  prone  to  do  still. 
It  is  what  that  Church  that  assumes  Peter  as  its 
foundation  does  too  sadly :  for  what  is  the  Romish 
Church  ?  It  is  an  attempt  to  anticipate  the  Millen- 
nial Church,  —  an  attempt  to  forestall  the  Church 
that  will  be.  At  present  the  Church  is  made  up  of 
tares  and  wheat,  and  is  subject  to  privation,  sorrow, 
and  trial.  She  is  a  widow  waiting  for  her  husband ; 
she  is  a  bride  waiting  for  the  coming  of  the  bride- 
groom. But  in  the  Church  of  Rome,  one  sits  as  if 
he  were  seated  on  his  Millennial  throne,  and  the 
Church  is  raised  to  an  extrinsic  pomp  and  splendor 
as  if  she  were  not  a  widow.  Indeed,  she  says,  "  I 
am  not  a  widow ;  I  sit  as  a  queen,  and  shall  see  no 
sorrow."  and  thus  she  has  tried  to  anticipate  the 
Millennial  Church,  and  thought  that  she  could  reach 
the  crown  without  going  through  the  sufferings  of 
the  cross  at  all.  And  we  ourselves  all  sympathize 
too  much  with  Peter:  we  would  rather  avoid  the 
cross,  and  snatch  prematurely  at  the  crown;  we 
should  like  to  get  to  heaven  without  tribulation,  to 
reach  the  goal  without  trouble,  to  arrive  at  the  end 
of  the  journey  without  the  travel  that  is  requisite 
before  it ;  and  we  would  rebuke  those  who  should 
say,  "  Through  much  tribulation  ye  must  enter  into 
the  kingdom  of  heaven."  Jesus  said  to  Peter,  after 
rebuking  him,  "  Get  thee  behind  me,  Satan."  Once 
he  was  called  —  as  you  recollect  when  I  explained 


MARK    VIII.  137 

Matthew — the  Rock,  or  the  Stone.  His  succession 
in  that  particular  is  claimed ;  but  when  he  is  called 
Satan,  his  succession  in  that  particular  —  which 
really  is  far  more  deserved  by  the  body  that  claims 
him  as  a  rock  —  is  altogether  repudiated.  But  if 
you  take  Peter  as  your  founder  because  he  was 
called  the  Rock,  you  may  take  Peter  as  your  founder 
because  he  was  called  Satan.  The  fact  is,  he  is 
not  our  founder  in  either  respect:  he  is  one  of  the 
stones  laid  upon  the  Rock,  with  many  flaws  and 
many  excellences,  saved  not  by  his  faith,  but  by  the 
cross  and  passion  of  his  Lord. 

Then  it  is  added,  that  "  whosoever  will  come  after 
me,"  —  that  is,  obey  me,  be  my  disciple,  —  let  him 
deny  himself  much  that  he  would  like,  much  that  he 
would  prefer,  and  take  up  his  cross.  Whatever  cross 
God  may  assign  us  in  his  providence,  we  are  to  take 
up,  and  seek  that  it  may  be  sanctified  by  his  grace ; 
and,  thus  bearing  our  cross,  we  are  to  follow  him. 

And  then  that  solemn  exclamation  is  uttered, 
"  What  shall  it  profit  a  man,  if  he  gain  the  whole 
world,  and  lose  his  own  soul  ?  "  What  a  consider- 
ation is  this !  What  a  solemn  problem  is  this  for 
us  to  solve !  What  will  it  profit  you  at  the  judg- 
ment-day, if  you  have  become  renowned,  rich,  pros- 
perous, great,  but  have  lost  your  soul?  And  just 
notice,  it  does  not  say  that  everybody  who  loses  his 
soul  is  sure  to  gain  the  whole  world.  The  gain  of 
the  whole  world  is  problematical  —  it  is,  "if"  he 
gain  it ;  but  the  pursuit  of  that  gain  to  the  neglect 
of  the  soul  ends  in  the  certain  destruction  of  the 
latter.  And  therefore,  instead  of  making  the  world, 
12* 


138  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

and  the  world's  gain,  our  main  thing,  it  ought  to  be 
subordinate ;  and  the  soul,  and  the  soul's  salvation, 
ought  to  be  the  object  of  our  prayers,  our  fondest 
aspirations,  and  our  noblest  efforts.  Suppose,  in  the 
pursuit  of  what  is  eternal  and  enduring,  you  lose  all, 
you  may  again  retrieve  all ;  but  if  you  lose  the  soul, 
that  can  never  be  recovered.  If  I  lose  my  property, 
I  may  by  industry  recover  it ;  if  I  lose  my  health,  I 
may  by  care  and  skill  regain  it ;  but  if  I  lose  my 
soul,  I  never  can  recover  it  —  it  is  hopelessly  lost. 
God  has  made  a  beautiful  law :  you  will  find  that 
those  who  have  been  born  blind,  or  who  have  become 
so,  have  an  exquisite  sensibility  of  ear  and  touch 
that  almost  compensates  for  their  misfortune;  and 
so  with  the  loss  of  hearing :  as  if  God  in  this  world 
would  not  allow  any  one  to  lose  any  blessing,  with- 
out some  compensation  that  will  nearly  equal  it. 
But  in  the  world  to  come,  if  we  lose  the  soul,  there 
is  not  only  no  restoration,  but  there  is  no  compen- 
sation ;  it  is  endless,  irretrievable,  total  loss.  Oh, 
may  we  learn  what  the  greatness  of  the  soul  is,  not 
by  its  loss,  but  by  its  everlasting  gain !  Because  so 
few  feel  the  immensity  of  its  value,  we  are  not  to 
infer  that  it  is  little.  Sin  deadens  and  destroys 
every  true  and  pure  and  holy  feeling,  and  makes 
man  keenly  alive  to  what  is  transient  as  a  winter 
sunbeam,  and  totally  insensible  to  what  is  infinite, 
eternal,  vital. 


What  is  the  thing  of  greatest  price, 
The  whole  creation  round  1 

That  which  was  lost  in  Paradiso, 
That  which  in  Christ  is  found. 


MARK     VIII.  139 

The  soul  of  man,  Jehovah's  breath, 

That  keeps  two  worlds  at  strife  ; 
Hell  moves  beneath  to  work  it  death, 

Heaven  stoops  to  give  it  life. 

And  is  this  treasure  here  below, 

In  earthly  vessels  frail  ? 
Can  none  its  utmost  value  know, 

Till  flesh  and  spirit  fail  ? 

Then  let  us  gather  round  the  cross, 

That  knowledge  to  obtain, 
Not  by  the  soul's  eternal  loss, 

But  everlasting  gain. 


CHAPTER   VIII.    38. 

ASHAMED    OP    CHRIST — WHO    ARE    SO?— REASONS    ALLEGED    FOR 
BEING    SO  —  NOT   SOUND   REASONS  —  CHRIST   ASHAMED    OF   SUCH. 

It  looks  as  if  the  reflection  in  the  text  had  very 
much  arisen  from  the  fact,  that  Peter  deprecated  the 
atonement,  suffering,  and  death  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ;  as  if  Peter  felt  that  to  die 
was  too  humbling  a  thing  for  so  great  and  illustri- 
ous a  leader;  and  that  if  Christ  died,  whatever 
might  be  the  value  of  his  death,  it  would  be  a  rea- 
son why  they  would  be  ashamed  in  preaching  him 
among  the  Jews,  and  proclaiming  his  glory  to  the 
Gentiles,  —  a  stumblingblock  to  the  Jew,  and  fool- 
ishness to  the  Greek.  Our  blessed  Lord,  in  order  to 
anticipate  such  a  feeling  as  this,  wherever  it  should 
arise,  gives  them  this  warning,  that  "whosoever"  — 
be  he  the  chiefest  of  the  apostles,  or  the  least  of 
saints — "whosoever  shall  be  ashamed  of  me  and  of 
my  words  in  this  sinful  and  adulterous  generation, 
of  him  shall  the  Son  of  Man  be  ashamed  at  that 
day,  when  he  cometh  in  the  glory  of  his  Father  with 
the  holy  angels." 

I  will  here  offer  some  explanations  of  the  grounds 
that  are  sometimes  felt,  if  not  openly  alleged,  why 
men  are,  if  they  do  not  admit  that  they  are,  ashamed 


MARK    VIII.  141 

of  the    Gospel    of   Christ;    and,    secondly,    I  will 
endeavor  to  show  what  constitutes  being  ashamed 
of  Christ,  and  of  his  words.     What  are  some  of 
the  reasons  why  persons  are  ashamed,  in  this  and  in 
every  generation,  of  Christ  the  Saviour,  and  of  his 
Gospel?     It  sometimes  occurs,  because  it  is  not  a 
popular  cause.     Most  men  like  to  be  on  the  winning 
side,  and  deprecate  what  seems   apparently  to  be 
the  losing  one ;  and  very  many  would  follow  a  mul- 
titude  to  do  what  is   evil,  rather  than  cling  by  a 
forlorn  cause,  and  follow  the  few  that  are  right  in 
principle.     Now  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  mere 
name  of  Christianity  is  popular  enough  ;  the  mere 
forms,  and  ceremonies,  and  rites  of  it  are  scarcely 
stumblingblocks  to  the  masses  of  mankind ;  but  let 
any  one  assert  that  he  feels  all  that  he  professes  in 
the  Creed;  that  his  profession  has  its  counterpart 
in  the  secret  and  silent  depths  of  his  heart ;  let  his 
religion   no   more   be   shell,  but   kernel, — no  more 
form,  but  reality, — no  more  a  pretence,  but  a  life; 
let  him  be  in  earnest  what  the  masses  of  mankind 
profess  to  be  in  form,  —  and  he  will  be  one  of  a 
small  minority ;  for  it  is  still  true  that  Christ's  flock, 
the  real,  living,    and   converted   company  of  them 
that  believe  in  Jesus,  is   limited  and  little  indeed. 
One  reason,  therefore,  why  some  would  be  ashamed 
of  real  religion  is,  because  it  is  not,  in  proportion 
as  it  grows  vital,  a  popular  cause.     But,  my  dear 
friends,   this   ought   not  to   be   a  reason   for  being 
ashamed  of  what  is  right.     It  is  an  honor  to  cling 
to  the  true,  the  holy,  and  the  just,  when  all  men 
denounce   it.     When   we  want   to   know   what  is 
duty,  we  must  not  count  heads,  but  read  texts. 


142  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

Men  are  sometimes  ashamed  of  Christ  and  his 
Gospel,  because  it  is  not  always  a  profitable  cause. 
To  gain  the  world  is  an  experiment  that  is  often 
made,  even  when  it  involves  the  loss  of  the  immor- 
tal soul ;  and  very  often  persons  in  accepting  a  relig- 
ion first  feel  the  pulse  at  the  wrist  of  Mammon, 
before  they  listen  to  the  prescriptions  from  the 
mouth  of  God.  They  first  ask,  "  Will  this  profit 
me  ? "  and  they  accept"  the  side  that  gives  promise 
of  the  greatest  gain,  though  it  have  the  least  of 
truth ;  and  they  reject  the  cause  that  has  nothing 
to  commend  it,  except  what  to  a  carnal  soul  is  so 
paltry  a  thing,  God  for  its  author,  truth  for  its  mat- 
ter, and  eternal  joy  for  its  happy  issue.  But  instead 
of  being  ashamed  of  the  cause  of  Christ  because 
it  is  not  always  profitable,  you  ought  to  recollect, 
"  What  shall  it  profit  a  man  if  he  gain  the  whole 
world,  and  lose  his  own  soul  ?  "  You  are  never  to 
compare  the  profits  of  earth  with  the  prospects  of 
eternity, — the  gain  of  so  much  trash,  with  the  loss 
of  an  exceeding  weight  of  glory.  At  the  same  time, 
it  ought  to  be  stated,  that  adhesion  to  the  truth  is 
not  always  the  loss  of  advancement  in  this  world. 
I' believe,  that  the  man  who  seeks  first  the  kingdom 
of  God  and  his  righteousness,  will,  according  to  the 
promise,  have  all  other  things  added  unto  him. 
The  shortest  route  from  one  point  to  another  is  a 
straight  line ;  and  the  shortest  path  from  poverty  to 
prosperity,  you  may  depend  upon  it,  is,  in  nine  cases 
out  of  ten,  the  path  of  principle,  allegiance  to  God, 
and  truth.  The  least  that  is  gained  as  a  homage  to 
your  adherence  to  principle  is  most  sweet.     A  whole 


MARK    VIII.  143 

fortune  realized  by  the  sacrifice  of  conscience,  will 
only  be  a  corroding  curse.  Let  us  not  be  ashamed 
of  the  Gospel,  when  the  loss  of  all  is  the  sacrifice 
we  must  make.  Let  us  not  be  ashamed  of  the  Gos- 
pel, whatever  be  the  issue  of  our  adherence  to  it. 
Let  us  never  forget  God's  own  promise.  "Them 
that  honor  me,  I  will  honor."  If  you  should  quote 
the  fact,  that  you  know  some  one  who  has  been 
a  decided  Christian,  and  has  been  launched  into 
poverty,  you  are  to  recollect  that  if  made  rich,  it 
might  have  been  the  ruin  of  his  soul  for  ever.  God 
will  not  always  give  us  what  looks  to  us  best,  but 
he  will  always  add  to  his  own,  whether  it  looks  so 
or  not,  what  is  most  expedient  for  them. 

Another  reason  why  men  are  sometimes  ashamed  of 
the  Gospel  of  Christ  is,  that  'not  many  mighty,  wise, 
or  noble  of  this  world  are  called.  I  admit,  that  in 
the  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians,  where  this  expression 
occurs,  it  relates  chiefly  to  the  ministry  of  the  Gos- 
pel ;  but  it  is  no  less  true,  that  the  great  of  this  world 
are  surrounded  by  so  much  to  fascinate  the  eye,  to 
ensnare  the  heart,  to  beguile  the  time,  and  to  exclude 
from  their  thoughts,  heaven,  hell,  God,  the  soul, 
eternity,  that  it  is  more  strikingly  the  minority  in 
the  highest  than  in  the  lowest  classes  who  embrace, 
not  nominal  religion,  for  that  is  popular  and  fashion- 
able enough,  but  vital,  personal  piety,  the  love  of 
God,  devotion  to  his  cause,  and  identity  with  all 
its  sacrifices  and  sufferings  in  the  midst  of  the 
world.  But  you  are  not  to  judge  of  a  cause  by 
the  pageantry  and  pomp  in  its  train.  Truth  remains 
true,  when  its  advocates  are  inarched  to  martyrdom ; 


144  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

and  a  lie  is  still  a  lie,  when  the  splendor  of  the  world 
is  heaped  upon  its  shrine,  and  the  kings  and  nobles 
of  the  world  constitute  the  chorus  that  shout 
hosannas  in  its  praise.  We  are  not  to  judge  of 
a  cause  by  the  multitude  of  them  that  adopt  it,  nor 
by  the  rank  or  greatness  of  them  that  profess  it. 
It  is  true  if  God  has  said  it,  though  only  fishermen 
and  mechanics  embrace  it ;  and  it  is  a  falsehood  if 
God  has  so  denounced  it,  though  kings  and  princes 
should  all  gather  round  it.  God  has  instituted  a 
new  order  of  nobility,  in  comparison  of  which  the 
patent  of  the  most  illustrious  is  poor.  The  Bereans 
were  more  noble,  because  they  searched  the  Scrip- 
tures whether  these  things  were  so  or  not. 

Some  are  ashamed  of  the  Gospel,  because  of 
the  afflictions  that  not  only  accompany  its  pro- 
fession as  a  matter-of-fact,  but  that  are  predicted 
by  our  blessed  Lord  as  part  and  parcel  of  the 
cross  that  we  must  carry.  "We  are  not  deceived  by 
our  Master :  He  has  told  us,  "  In  the  world  ye  shall 
have  tribulation ; "  but  he  has  added,  "  Be  of  good 
cheer  ;  I  have  overcome  the  world."  An  apostle  has 
told  us,  that  through  much  tribulation  we  must 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Now,  flesh  and 
blood  does  not  like  to  suffer ;  but  suffering  to  a 
Christian  is  purely  paternal ;  suffering  to  an  unbeliever 
is  entirely  penal.  When  a  Christian  suffers,  it  is 
always  because  there  is  a  needs  be.  Jesus  would 
give  you  a  cup  all  sweetness  to  drink,  if  it  were  best 
for  you;  and  when  he  puts  the  bitter  element  into  it, 
it  is  the  prescription  of  the  Good  Physician,  —  it  is 
the  tempering  of  the  cup  with  what  is  expedient  for 


MARK    VIII.  145 

you.  I  pity  from  the  heart  the  man  who  lives  in 
perpetual  sunshine.  We  cannot  endure  it ;  we  need 
shadow ;  and  if  it  do  not  come,  we  shall  soon  suffer 
the  painful  effects  of  its  absence.  If,  then,  suffering 
be  a  part  of  the  profession  of  Christ,  let  us  not  be 
ashamed  of  it ;  but  if  any  man  suffer,  as  says  St. 
Peter,  let  him  suffer  as  a  Christian. 

Another  reason  why  some  are  ashamed  of  the 
Gospel  is,  that  those  who  are  consistent  enough  to 
stand  by  its  principles,  and  assert  its  claims,  always 
and  everywhere,  are  sure  to  be  charged  with  bigotry. 
One  of  the  most  common  and  telling  attacks  that 
mere  worldly  men  make  upon  a  man  who  has  the 
honesty  to  do  what  he  has  the  grace  to  believe  is, 
"  You  are  a  bigot.  You  want  liberality  and  enlight- 
enment." There  is  a  difference  between  liberality 
and  latitudinarianism.  Liberality  is  to  forgive  a 
difference  in  details,  but  never  to  forget  that  principle 
is  one  and  the  same  always  and  everywhere,  and 
cannot  be  sacrificed  or  compromised.  It  is  liberality 
when  you  surrender  the  largest  shell  of  prejudice,  if 
it  will  conciliate  a  brother ;  but  it  would  be  latitudi- 
narianism if  you  were  to  compromise  the  least  vital 
seed  of  eternal  truth,  if  it  were  to  conciliate  all 
mankind.  It  is  bigotry,  I  admit,  to  assert,  for 
instance,  that  you  can  only  be  saved  in  the  English 
or  the  Scottish  Church.  It  is  bigotry  to  assert,  that 
you  cannot  pray  without  a  liturgy,  or  that  you  can- 
not pray  with  one.  It  is  bigotry  to  say,  that  you 
must  believe  in  episcopacy  or  in  presbytery ;  but  it 
is  not  bigotry  to  assert  that  there  is  but  one  name 
under  heaven  given  among  men  whereby  we  can  be 
13 


146  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

saved,  the  name  of  Jesus.  It  is  not  bigotry  to  assert, 
that  the  blood  of  Christ  alone  clcanseth  from  all  sin. 
Compromise  here  is  being  ashamed  of  Christ  and 
the  gospel  of  his  salvation. 

Another  cause  why  some  persons  are  ashamed,  not 
only  of  vital  religion,  but  of  Christianity  itself,  is  — 
what  have  been  attacked  by  the  sceptic  in  every  age  — 
the  crimes  that  have  been  perpetrated,  and  the  wicked- 
ness that  has  been  done  in  the  injured  name  of 
Christianity.  Open  the  pages  of  the  sceptic,  and  he 
will  remind  you  of  the  Inquisition,  and  of  the  per- 
secutions that  were  carried  on  by  professing  Chris- 
tians from  the  10th  to  the  15th  century  in  Piedmont, 
and  in  the  valleys  of  the  Cottian  Alps.  All  this, 
they  say,  was  done  by  men  who  professed  Chris- 
tianity. It  was  done  by  men  who  seized  Christianity 
as  a  consecration  for  deeds  that  originated  from 
beneath,  and  dishonored  God  and  the  cause  they 
espoused.  For  these  things  be  not  ashamed  of 
Christ,  but  Antichrist;  be  not  ashamed  of  Chris- 
tianity, but  of  the  apostasy.  Do  not  condemn  the 
holy,  merciful,  beautiful,  and  true  religion,  because  it 
has  been  seized  by  men  inspired  by  Satan,  and  made 
before  the  world  to  consecrate  a  cause  it  reprobates, 
repudiates,  and  has  no  sympathy  with  at  all.  The 
light  of  the  noonday  sun  has  been  used  to  guide  the 
murderer  to  his  victim ;  but  you  do  not  blame  the 
sun  in  the  firmament  for  that.  The  pale  light  of 
the  chaste  moon  has  been  used  to  guide  the  depraved 
to  the  gratification  of  their  appetites,  but  you  do  not 
blame  the  moon  for  that.  Blame  not  religion,  but 
man ;  and  blame  not  the  Bible,  but  the  perversion, 


MARK    VIII.  147 

abuse,  and  corruption  of  it.  Be  not  ashamed  of 
this  glorious  tree,  because  the  spider  has  woven  its 
web  amongst  its  twigs,  and  the  caterpillar  has 
wasted  its  bright  leaves  by  its  presence ;  but  assert 
the  majesty  and  Divine  origin  of  the  truth ;  for  it  is 
from  God,  and  it  tends  to  him,  and  is  responsible 
only  for  whatsoever  things  are  pure,  and  just,  and 
lovely,  and  of  good  report. 

But  it  will  be  said,  even  Protestants  have  perse- 
cuted. That  is  most  true ;  but  it  was  not  their 
Protestantism  that  made  them  do  so,  but  their  own 
internal  depravity,  and  nothing  else.  It  is  quite  true 
that  in  England  and  Scotland,  and  on  the  continent 
of  Europe,  most  of  the  Reformers  held  the  idea  that 
a  man  ought  to  be  punished  personally  for  his  relig- 
ious and  solemn  convictions ;  but  when  they  did  so, 
we  ask,  where  did  they  learn  these  lessons  ?  It  was 
in  the  school  of  Rome  ;  and  my  amazement  is,  not 
that  they  had  these  stains  of  the  apostasy  out  of 
which  they  came  clinging  to  them,  but  that  they  had 
so  few.  God  used  the  Reformers,  not  because  they 
were  sinless,  but  in  spite  of  their  sins ;  and,  at  all 
events,  if  God  would  not  have  used  such  men  as 
Knox,  and  Luther,  and  Cranmer,  and  Ridley,  to 
reform  the  Church,  I  do  not  think  he  ever  could 
have  used  such  men  as  the  Hildebrands,  the  Bor- 
gias,  and  Leo  X.  to  perpetuate  the  Church.  The 
fact  is,  persecution  is  more  or  less  indigenous  to  the 
human  heart ;  but  the  real  question  is,  in  which  rule 
of  faith  is  it  incorporated  ?  In  the  Bible  it  is  repu- 
diated. The  Bible,  and  the  Bible  alone,  is  the 
religion  of  Protestants ;  and  it  tells  us  emphatically 


148  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

that  the  weapons  of  our  warfare  are  not  carnal,  but 
mighty :  and  if  the  fagots  are  to  blaze,  let  them  be 
kindled  by  the  foes,  not  by  the  friends  of  Jesus.  If 
the  sword  is  to  be  unsheathed  in  the  cause  of 
religion,  let  it  not  be  by  the  friends,  but  by  the  foes 
of  the  Gospel  of  Christ. 

Again,  it  has  been  made  a  ground  of  being 
ashamed  of  the  Gospel,  because  loud  Christian 
professors  have  very  often  acted  most  unworthily 
of  it.  But,  my  dear  friends,  honesty  is  not  to  be 
blamed,  because  thieves  introduce  themselves  to 
your  warehouses  as  honest  men ;  and  truth  is  not 
the  worse,  because  a  liar  solemnly  asserts  that  he 
is  governed  by  it,  when  he  is  seeking  only  to  com- 
pass his  own  objects ;  and  Christianity  is  not  to  be 
renounced,  because  a  loud  professor,  who  never  felt 
its  power,  falls,  like  a  star  from  its  orbit,  to  whom  is 
reserved  the  blackness  of  darkness  for  ever.  But  let 
me  notice,  now,  some  respects  in  which  true  Chris- 
tians may  practically,  though  not,  probably,  inten- 
tionally, be  ashamed  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ.  One 
way  in  which  this  sin  is  perpetrated,  or  at  least 
proximately  so,  is  silence  when  Christ's  name  is  dis- 
honored, or  Christ's  kingdom  denounced  or  assailed. 
It  is  not  enough,  my  dear  friends,  that  you  should 
say  nothing  against  Christ.  You  are  ashamed  of 
the  Gospel  if,  on  the  proper  occasion,  in  the  proper 
place,  and  in  the  proper  spirit,  you  do  not  speak  for 
him,  when  all  speak  against  him,  and  avow  your 
adhesion  to  his  cause,  when  great  and  powerful  men 
denounce  it.  What  would  you  say  of  that  soldier 
who  would  hear  patiently  his  Queen  calumniated, 


MARK     VIII.  149 

and  conceal  the  symbols  and  the  uniform  that  show 
he  is  in  her  service  ?  What  would  you  say  of  that 
patriot  who  should  hear  his  native  land  caricatured 
and  reproached,  and  be  silent  as  he  listened?  and 
what  respect  would  you  have  for  that  parent  who 
would  hear  his  hearth  and  his  fireside  spoken  of  in 
language  of  hatred  and  contempt,  and  not  breathe 
one  whisper  of  remonstrance  ?  and  what  can  you 
say  of  that  Christian  who,  in  the  railway  carriage, 
tfre  steamboat,  or  in  the  houses  of  Parliament,  can 
hear  Christ's  cause  derided  or  despised,  and  not 
stand  up,  and  say,  "  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  Gos- 
pel of  Christ  ?  "  I  do  not  believe  that  a  man  is 
only  to  be  a  Christian  in  the  church,  and  only  a 
tradesman  in  the  shop  ;  that  a  man  is  to  be  a  Chris- 
tian personally,  but  that  the  instant  he  enters  the 
Parliament,  he  is  to  leave  his  Christianity,  like  his 
cloak,  behind  him.  It  seems  to  me,  that  wherever  a 
Christian  is,  there  he  ought  to  be  the  advocate  of 
the  ascendency,  not  of  a  sect,  or  a  party,  or  a 
crotchet,  but  of  vital  and  true  religion. 

Christians  seems  to  me  to  approach  being  ashamed 
of  the  Gospel  of  Christ,  when  they  forsake  the  assem- 
bling of  themselves  together.  I  admit  that  coming 
to  the  house  of  God  is  a  very  equivocal  way  of 
showing  that  we  are  Christians.  Many  come  regu- 
larly to  the  sanctuary  who  are  not  Christians  at  all. 
But  then,  very  few  absent  themselves  from  it  who 
are  Christians ;  and  it  seems  to  me  that  if  coming -to 
the  house  of  prayer  be  not  evidence  of  Christianity, 
the  forsaking  of  it  is  very  strong  presumptive  proof 
that  there  is  no  Christianity  at  all ;  and,  at  all  events, 
13* 


150  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

the  least  that  we  can  do  to  show  that  we  are  not 
ashamed  of  the  Gospel  is  to  join  in  the  prayers  and 
praises  of  the  sanctuary,  and  to  listen  to  those  les- 
sons that  will  give  us  strong  motives  and  sustaining 
hopes  to  be  steadfast,  immovable,  always  abounding 
in  the  work  of  the  Lord. 

Another  way  of  at  least  seeming  to  be  ashamed 
of  the  Gospel  of  Christ  is,  refusing  to  come  to  the 
Lord's  table.  I  think  that  a  communion  table  is  the 
place  where  a  Christian  by  a  very  special  act  declares, 
"  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ."  It 
seems  to  me,  that  when  a  man  seats  himself  there,  he 
declares  to  the  world,  "  Be  ashamed  of  religion  who 
will,  I  am  persuaded  that  it  is  the  wisdom  of  God, 
and  the  power  of  God." 

Another  way  in  which  Christians  seem  to  be 
ashamed  of  the  Gospel  is,  by  cherishing  an  excess  of 
Christian  modesty.  They  are  frightened  lest  they 
should  express  more  than  they  feel,  or  seem  to  parade 
what  ought  to  be  the  sacred  resident  of  the  sanc- 
tuary. You  fear  lest  you  should  embarrass  rather 
than  aid  Christ's  cause  by  taking  a  part  in  it.  Now, 
it  does  seem  to  me  that  every  man  who  has  an  atom 
of  power  is  solemnly  bound,  if  he  would  not  be 
ashamed  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ,  to  consecrate  that 
power  to  his  glory.  I  believe,  that  very  many  are 
almost  blanks  in  the  world,  though  they  escape  being 
blots,  because  they  will  not  take  the  opportunity  of 
being  blessings  to  the  world.  Often  and  again, 
words  of  comfort  that  would  cheer  a  sad  heart  mount 
to  your  lips,  but  from  excessive  reserve  they  are 
arrested    before  they  are  expressed.     Many  a  time 


MARK    VIII.  151 

deeds  of  beneficence  that  would  make  the  widow's 
heart  sing  for  joy  are  not  done  by  you,  lest  you 
should  seem  to  be  too  forward,  or  to  assume  a  place 
that  does  not  belong  to  you.  My  dear  friends,  while 
we  do  not  parade  our  religion,  while  we  do  not  make 
a  display  of  our  principles,  we  ought  not  to  be  silent 
when  they  are  assailed,  or  to  connive  when  they  are 
sacrificed,  but  everywhere  and  always  not  to  be 
ashamed  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ. 

The  very  awful  language  that  will  be  pronounced 
upon  those  who  are  ashamed  of  him  is,  that  he  will 
be  ashamed  of  them  when  the  glory  and  the  king- 
dom are  visibly  his,  because  they  have  been  ashamed 
of  him  when  reproach  and  contumely  were  his  only 
inheritance.  He  says  himself,  "  Whoso  shall  confess 
me  before  men,  him  will  I  confess  before  my  Father 
in  heaven;  but  whoso  shall  deny  me,  him  will  I 
deny  before  my  Father  in  heaven."  And,  at  that 
day,  when  he  shall  come  in  the  glory  of  his  Father, 
there  will  be  but  two  classes,  —  they  that  have  not 
been  ashamed  of  him,  and  they  who  have.  A  day 
comes  when  all  the  outer  distinctions  of  this  life  shall 
be  levelled,  and  only  two  grand  distinctions  shall  last 
and  live  for  ever.  On  whose  side  are  we?  Be 
Christians,  and  you  will  not  be  ashamed  of  saying 
so ;  seek  your  heart  to  be  renewed ;  and  lip,  and 
hand,  and  foot,  will  all  give  token  that  it  is  so. 
What  we  need  is  a  deeper  and  richer  inspiration  of 
God's  grace  in  the  heart,  and  then  never  and  nowhere 
shall  we  be  ashamed  of  what  is  our  greatest  orna- 
ment and  glory,  —  Christ,  and  him  crucified. 


152  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 


Note.  — [27-30.]  Matt.  xvi.  13-20;  Luke  ix.  18-21.  With  the 
exception  of  the  introduction  in  Luke,  which  describes  the  Lord  to 
have  been  alone,  praying,  and  joined  by  his  disciples,  and  the  omission 
of  the  praise  of,  and  promise  to  Peter,  by  both  Mark  and  Luke,  the 
three  are  in  exact  accordance.  On  this  latter  omission  no  stress  must, 
therefore,  be  laid  as  to  the  character  of  Mark's  Gospel,  as  has  been 
done.     (Theophylact,  cited  by  De  Wette.)  —AJ/ord. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

transfiguration  —  moses  and  elijah  —  peter's  proposal  — 
promise   op  Elijah's   coming — demoniac  cured  —  prayer, 

fasting,  and  faith — interpretation  —  endless  misery 

affliction. 

It  will  not  be  necessary  that  I  should  dwell  very 
long  in  my  expository  remarks  on  the  transfiguration, 
recorded  in  this  chapter,  since  the  very  same  histori- 
cal event  came  before  us,  and  was  the  subject  of 
protracted  exposition,  in  a  chapter  of  the  previous 
Gospel  according  to  St.  Matthew. 1 

Our  Lord  says,  "  There  be  some  of  them  that 
stand  here  which  shall  not  taste  of  death,  till  they 
have  seen  the  kingdom  of  God  come  with  power," 
that  is,  a  gleam  of  that  kingdom,  a  vision  of  that 
descending  glory,  a  sight  of  its  splendor  and  magnifi- 
cence, as  it  were,  in  the  dawn,  that  shall  convince 
them  of  the  greatness  and  glory  of  the  noonday, 
and  be  to  them  an  earnest  of  their  blessed  entrance 
into  that  kingdom,  when  this  dispensation  shall  be 
merged  in  it.  We  read,  that  in  fulfilment  of  this 
promise,  and  after  six  days,  James,  and  Peter,  and 
John,  were  taken  with  him  into  a  high  mountain, 
and  insulated  from  the  din,  uproar,  and  confusion  of 

1  See  "  Sabbath  Evening  Readings  on  St.  Matthew's  Gospel." 


154  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

this  world,  lonely  or  apart,  with  none  to  disturb, 
intrude,  or  interfere,  and  He  was  there,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  the  passage,  "transfigured,"  or  invested 
with  a  portion  of  his  shining  raiment,  or  appeared  in 
that  splendor,  magnificence,  and  glory  in  which  he 
will  appear  when  He  cometh  in  the  clouds  with 
power  and  great  glory,  and  every  eye  shall  see  him, 
and  they  that  pierced  him  shall  mourn  because  of 
him.  In  this  vision  of  the  millennial  kingdom  in 
brief,  in  this  epitome,  or,  to  use  a  common  expression, 
this  birdseye  view  of  the  kingdom  that  is  to  be,  it  is 
said  that  "  His  raiment  became  shining,  exceeding 
white  as  snow,  so  as  no  fuller  on  earth  can  white 
them."  So  will  his  people  be  when  it  shall  be  asked, 
"  Who  are  these  that  are  arrayed  in  white  robes  ? 
These  are  they  that  came  out  of  great  tribulation, 
and  have  washed  their  robes,  and  made  them  white 
in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb." 

We  read  also,  that  upon  this  Mount  of  Transfig- 
uration there  appeared  Moses,  the  representative  of 
the  Law,  and  Elijah,  the  representative  of  the  Proph- 
ets, talking  with  Jesus,  and  not  only  talking  with 
him,  but  Moses  evidently  saying,  "  This  is  the 
Prophet  of  whom  I  spake  ;"  and  Elijah,  "  This  is  the 
Messiah  of  whom  I  prophesied."  There  these  two 
were  not  sharers  in  his  glory,  but  witnesses  to  him  as 
the  Lamb  of  God,  the  King  of  Zion,  the  only 
Saviour  of  sinners. 

Peter,  ever  first  to  speak,  ever  first  to  flee  ;  his  rash- 
ness sometimes  a  virtue,  sometimes  a  fault,  —  prob- 
ably and  strictly  viewed  constitutionally  neither, — 
said  to  Jesus,  "  Master,  it  is  good  for  us  to  be  here," 


MARK    IX.  155 

—  no  doubt  of  that ;  "  and  let  us  make  three  taber- 
nacles ;  one  for  thee,  and  one  for  Moses,  and  one  for 
Elias,"  evidently  desiring  to  pay  to  Christ  the  primary, 
but  to  Elijah  and  Moses  a  secondary  honor ;  and  he 
evidently  thought  that  now  the  kingdom  of  glory 
had  dawned,  and  that  no  kingdom  of  pilgrimage  and 
trial  had  to  be  gone  through.  Peter  was  like  most 
of  us,  —  he  would  willingly  build  the  tabernacle 
upon  Tabor,  forgetting  that  it  could  not  be  built  there 
till  the  great  suffering  on  Calvary  was  finished.  We 
would  all  anticipate  the  millennium  ;  we  would 
snatch  the  crown  without  the  cross ;  we  would  fore- 
stall God's  time,  and  take  premature  possession  of 
the  approaching  glory,  instead  of  placing  ourselves 
in  God's  hand,  and  drinking  first  of  the  bitter  cup, 
that  we  may  drink  it  sweet  and  full  in  our  Father's 
kingdom.  The  only  explanation  of  Peter's  rash 
expression  is,  that  he  wist  not  what  to  say.  He  was 
so  overwhelmed  by  the  splendor  of  the  scene,  that  he 
lost  his  self-possession ;  and  what  he  said  was  not 
what  he  maturely  thought,  but  what  came  uppermost 
and  found  expression,  before,  perhaps,  he  was  able  to 
control,  modify,  or  repress  it. 

.  Then  we  read  that  a  cloud  came,  and  over- 
shadowed them  ;  and  a  voice  came  from  the  cloud, 
evidently  rebuking  Peter  by  implication,  "  This  is  my 
beloved  Son;  hear  him,"  —  not  Moses,  nor  Elijah; 
that  is,  turn  away  from  all  reverence,  worship,  or 
homage,  even  to  the  most  exalted  of  created  intelli- 
gences, and  concentrate  all  your  homage  and  adora- 
tion upon  Him  who  alone  is  entitled  to  it,  the  Lamb 
of  God,  the  beloved  Son,  the  only  Saviour.     "  And 


156  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

suddenly,  when  they  had  looked  round  about,  they 
saw  no  man  any  more,  save  "  Him  who  was  first  and 
last,  and  all  and  in  all,  "  Jesus  only." 

We  then  read,  that  when  he  came  down  from  the 
mountain,  he  charged  them  to  tell  no  man  —  for 
reasons  that  he  himself  knew  —  probably  because 
the  time  and  place  of  telling  these  tidings  were  not 
yet  come. 

They  did  not  understand  what  He  meant  by  his 
rising  from  the  dead ;  and  this  fact,  that  the  apostles 
were  so  unenlightened,  that  they  did  not  expect 
Jesus  to  rise  from  the  dead,  makes  them  the  more 
competent  witnesses  of  that  fact.  They  asked  him, 
however,  "  Why  say  the  scribes  that  Elias  must  first 
come  ?  "  The  scribes  said  it  because  the  prophets 
had  predicted  it.  "Jesus  answered,  and  told  them, 
Elias  verily  cometh  first,  and  restoreth  all  things." 
The  scribes  said  this,  not  from  tradition,  but  from 
Scripture ;  and  he  says,  "  It  is  perfectly  true  that 
Elijah  will  first  come,  and  restore  all  things ;  and 
how  it  is  written  of  the  Son  of  Man,  that  he  must 
suffer  many  things,  and  be  set  at  nought.  But  I  say 
unto  you,  That  Elias  is  indeed  come,  and  they  have 
done  unto  him  whatsoever  they  listed,  as  it  is  written 
of  him."  Now,  this  seems  at  first  to  imply  that 
John  the  Baptist  was  Elijah ;  but  you  will  find  from 
very  carefnl  inquiry  that  he  was  not  so.  He  came, 
in  the  language  of  another  Gospel,  in  the  spirit  of 
Elijah,  and  he  received  the  treatment  that  was  pre- 
dicted ;  but  he  was  not  Elijah.  The  plain  evidence 
of  this  is,  that  when  they  asked  John,  "  Art  thou  that 
prophet  ?  "  he  answered,  "  No."     Again,  "  Art  thou 


MARK    IX.  157 

Elijah?"  and  he  answered,  "No."  Of  course  John 
knew  what  he  was ;  and  his  answering,  "  I  am  not 
Elijah,"  is  plain  evidence  that  he  was  not.  But,  you 
say,  what  then  is  the  meaning  of  the  expression, 
"  Elias  is  indeed  come,"  which,  undoubtedly,  refers 
to  John  the  Baptist?  I  answer,  it  is  explained  by 
the  parallel  passage,  which  tells  us  that  John  came 
in  the  spirit  of  Elijah.  He  came  to  herald  Christ  to 
suffer,  just  as  Elijah  will  come  to  herald  Christ  to 
reign.  Our  Lord  says,  that  Elijah  "will  restore  all 
things  ; "  but  John  the  Baptist  restored  nothing. 

I  believe  that  before  the  second  personal  advent 
of  our  blessed  Lord  in  glory  and  majesty,  Elijah  will 
literally  come  and  restore  all  things.  There  is  noth- 
ing strange  in  supposing,  that  as  John  the  Baptist 
came  to  precede  Christ  to  suffer,  so  Elijah  will  come 
to  precede  Christ  to  reign  in  glory.  That  Elijah 
lives,  is  plain  from  the  fact  that  he  appeared  on  the 
Mount  of  Transfiguration ;  and  that  he  will  come  to 
restore  all  things,  is  not  only  the  promise  of  our 
blessed  Lord,  but  the  reiterated  prophecy  of  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures.  In  the  book  of  the  prophet 
Malachi,  this  is  evidently  alluded  to,  when  he  says, 
at  the  5th  verse  of  the  4th  chapter,  "  Behold,  I  will 
send  you  Elijah  the  prophet,  before  the  great  and 
dreadful  day  of  the  Lord ; "  not  before  Christ's  day 
of  suffering,  but  before  the  day  that  will  burn  as  an 
oven,  and  the  day  when  the  heavens  shall  be  on  fire, 
and  the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat.  And 
what  shall  he  do  ?  He  shall  turn  the  heart  of  the 
fathers  —  that  is,  the  Jews  —  to  the  children  —  that 
is,  the  Gentiles ;  and  Jew  and  Gentile,  knit  together 
14 


158  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

in  the  bonds  of  a  new  communion,  shall  constitute 
one  holy  and  happy  ransomed  family.  It  is  utterly 
impossible  to  explain  the  various  passages  that  relate 
to  the  coming  of  Elijah  on  any  other  supposition 
than  this,  that  before  the  last  day  that  looms  in  the 
distant  horizon,  and  comes  nearer  every  day  that  we 
live,  and  is  almost  at  our  doors,  Elijah  will  come, 
restore  all  things,  and,  according  to  the  promise,  turn 
the  heart  of  the  fathers  to  the  children,  and  the  heart 
of  the  children  to  the  fathers  ;  and  then  shall  be  seen 
the  Son  of  Man,  preceded  by  his  sign,  coming  in  the 
clouds  of  heaven  with  power  and  great  glory. 

In  this  ninth  chapter  we  find  a  miracle  wrought 
by  our  blessed  Lord,  in  the  cure  of  one  who  was 
possessed  by  a  demon,  and  not  the  victim  merely  of 
a  painful  disease.  It  is  impossible  to  conclude  that 
the  son  of  this  father  was  simply  an  invalid,  from  the 
language  that  Jesus  exnploys.  When  he  cures  him,  he 
does  not  touch  him,  as  he  did  in  cases  of  disease,  but 
Jesus  speaks  to  the  spirit  that  was  within  him  —  to 
the  demon  that  had  taken  possession  of  him  —  and 
says,  "  I  charge  thee,  come  out  of  him,  and  enter  no 
more  into  him."  Now,  if  language  has  any  mean- 
ing, that  implies  that  there  was  a  personality  in  the 
soul  of  this  man  totally  distinct  from  his  own ;  that 
there  was  an  occupant  of  his  soul,  and  that  he  was 
the  victim  of  a  despotism  within  him ;  and,  therefore, 
Jesus  spoke  to  the  demon,  and  said,  "  Come  out  of 
him."  I  do  not  think  there  is  such  a  thing,  or  has 
been  such  a  thing,  as  demoniacal  possession  for  the 
last  1800  years.  It  seems  as  if  Satan  had  always 
tried  to  outmanoeuvre  God  by  mimicking  the  steps 


MARK    IX.  159 

He  has  taken  in  his  march  to  ultimate  victory. 
"When  God  spake  by  his  prophets,  Satan  had  his 
prophets  too.  When  Jesus  was  incarnate  in  the 
flesh,  the  devil  took  possession  of  human  bosoms 
and  human  souls,  and  became  to  that  extent  incar- 
nate also.  Now,  since  the  day  of  Pentecost,  the 
Holy  Spirit  saves  by  acting  directly  upon  the  human 
mind;  Satan,  in  mimicry  of  God's  work,  corrupts 
by  acting  on  the  human  mind  also.  Thus,  wherever 
the  true  coin  appears,  the  forged  one  is  seen  also. 
Wherever  the  true  sovereignty  is  felt,  the  usurpation 
is  seen  also.  Satan  is  always  trying,  and  sometimes 
with  success,  to  bruise  the  Saviour's  heel,  but  with 
the  deep  consciousness  that  his  own  head  will  be 
bruised,  and  his  kingdom  utterly  overthrown. 

The  apostles  asked  Jesus  why  they  could  not 
cast  the  demon  out ;  and  he  says,  "  This  kind,"  not 
as  if  he  spoke  of  a  special  kind,  but  demoniacal 
possession,  "  can  come  forth  by  nothing  but  by 
prayer  and  fasting;"  that  is,  prayer  is  the  instru- 
ment. But  fasting  does  not  mean  abstaining  from 
food  merely;  it  denotes  insulation  from  the  world, 
separation  from  its  vanities,  its  duties,  its  pleasures 
and  enjoyments,  and  the  occupation  of  the  whole 
heart  with  the  things  that  belong  to  our  eternal 
peace.  And  Jesus  has  been  pleased  to  show 
throughout  the  whole  of  the  Gospel,  that  the  great- 
est effects  are  always  to  be  achieved  by  the  greatest 
faith.  Why  he  has  made  faith  necessary  to  reward 
or  pardon,  it  is  not  for  us  to  ascertain ;  it  is  enough 
that  it  is  his  arrangement,  and  that  he  does  it  wisely 
and  well. 


160  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

We  then  read  of  the  conduct  of  the  apostles,  who 
seeing  one  casting  out  demons  in  Christ's  name, 
were  so  unenlightened,  and  so  actuated  by  a  secta- 
rian spirit,  that  they  forbad  him  because  he  followed 
not  them.  This  is  the  dissenter  saying,  "  I  do  not 
think  the  churchman  can  do  any  good,  because  he 
is  a  churchman ; "  and  the  churchman  saying,  "  I 
do  not  think  the  dissenter  can  do  any  good,  because 
he  is  a  dissenter, — because  such  a  one  follows  not 
with  us,  pronounces  not  our  shibboleth,  worships  not 
in  our  form,  we  think  he  can  do  no  good;  and 
instead  of  letting  him  do  what  he  is  trying  to  do, 
casting  out  wickedness,  and  prejudice,  and  passion, 
in  the  name  of  Jesus,  let  us  persecute  him  in  any 
ancient  possible  canonical  way.  We  do  not  care 
what  good  he  does,  for  we  do  not  get  the  credit  of 
it."  How  early  do  we  see  this  proscriptive,  exclu- 
sive, and  bigoted  spirit  manifest  itself  among  the 
apostles  themselves!  Do  not  blame  the  Church  of 
Rome,  as  having  a  monopoly  of  bigotry,  persecu- 
tion, and  malignant  feeling  towards  those  whom 
she  calls  heretics.  The  fact  is,  every  unconverted 
man  would  be  a  pope,  if  he  could ;  and  every  collec- 
tion of  unconverted  men  would  be  a  persecuting 
synod,  if  they  had  only  power  to  be  so.  It  is  human 
nature  that  seeks  to  put  down  what  does  not  glorify 
itself;  and  the  difference  between  it  and  the  Church 
of  Rome  is,  that  human  nature  is  there  consecrated 
and  canonized,  and  that  which  we  reprobate  in  the 
light  of  the  Gospel  is  recognized  as  part  and  parcel 
of  Christian  duty. 

We  then  read  that  our  Lord  rebuked  those  who 


MARK    IX.  161 

would  not  resign  a  favorite  indulgence  in  order  to 
escape  permanent  spiritual  injury.  He  says  that 
whosoever,  whatever  be  his  name,  or  whatever  be 
the  amount  of  his  light,  gives  even  the  least  that  he 
has  —  a  cup  of  cold  water — in  Christ's  name,  believ- 
ing on  him,  to  one  who  belongs  to  Christ,  he  shall 
not  lose  his  reward.  What  encouragement  is  this 
to  give,  and  to  feel  the  blessedness  of  him  who 
delights  in  giving!  for  it  is  more  blessed  to  give 
than  to  receive.  And  how  delightful  is  it  to  know 
that  those  who  have  not  much  to  give,  but  who  give 
what  they  can  really  spare  for  Christ's  sake  —  are 
accepted  of  him !  But  are  we  to  understand  those 
passages  literally  in  this  chapter,  "  If  thy  hand  offend 
thee,  cut  it  off? "  No,  certainly  not.  This  would 
be  just  that  sort  of  interpretation  which  leads  people 
to  find  in  the  3d  chapter  of  John  baptismal  regen- 
eration, and  in  the  6th  chapter  of  John  transubstan- 
tiation.  We  are  evidently  to  interpret  such  passages 
as  these  in  the  spirit  in  which  they  were  spoken, 
and  in  the  obvious  light  in  which  they  were  written. 
"  Labor  not  for  the  bread  that  perisheth,"  does  not 
mean  that  we  are  not  to  labor  for  our  daily  bread : 
on  the  contrary,  we  are  taught  that  he  who  will  not 
work,  neither  should  he  eat ;  but  it  teaches  us  that 
we  are  to  labor  rather  and  more  earnestly  for  the 
enduring  bread  than  for  the  bread  that  perisheth. 
So  here,  if  an  object,  dear  as  a  right  eye  and  useful 
as  a  righthand,  stand  between  you  and  your 
progress  to  heaven  and  your  complete  surrender 
to  Christ  Jesus,  that  object,  however  dear,  and  the 
sacrifice  of  it,  however  painful,  you  are  to  part  with, 
14* 


162  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

renounce,  and  resign,  counting  all  but  loss  for  the 
excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus  your 
Lord. 

As  to  the  expressions  that  are  here  repeated, 
"  Their  worm  dieth  not,  and  the  fire  is  not  quenched," 
I  do  not  think  that  these  necessarily  prove  a  mate- 
rial and  literal  description  of  the  sufferings  of  the 
lost.  There  is  no  literal  worm  that  gnaws ;  and  I 
do  not  discover  from  the  Bible  that  there  is  a  literal 
fire  that  burns ;  but  these  symbols  are  employed  by 
the  Holy  Spirit  to  denote  the  intense  wretchedness 
of  that  state  wherein  God  has  forgotten  to  be 
gracious.  But  nobody,  I  think,  on  reading  these 
expressions,  can  doubt  that  the  misery  of  the  lost 
is  perpetual  and  ever  enduring.  I  think  that  those 
people  called  Universalists,  instead  of  preaching 
down  hell,  would  do  much  better  if  they  would 
preach  up  Christ  and  heaven.  If  you  show  that 
whatever  be  the  intensity  of  the  misery  of  the  lost, 
there  is  no  reason  why  one  sinner  on  earth  should 
perish,  you  do  better  than  by  encouraging  them  in 
the  path  of  ruin  to  plunge  into  the  place  of  misery, 
in  the  wretched  and  vain  anticipation  that  hell  is 
only  a  sort  of  purgatory  that  has  a  happy  and  pros- 
perous end.  As  far  as  I  can  gather  from  the  whole 
word  of  God,  it  is  a  place  of  perpetual  sorrow.  If 
man  cannot  be  saved  now,  surely  he  cannot  be 
saved  then. 

You  ask,  what  is  meant  by  that  expression, 
h  Every  one  shall  be  salted  with  fire,  and  every  sacri- 
fice shall  be  salted  with  salt."  I  do  not  think  that 
that  passage  has  the  least  reference  whatever  to  the 


MARK    IX.  163 

state  of  the  lost.  Our  Lord  is  there  alluding  rather 
to  the  expressions,  "  If  thy  hand  offend  thee,  cut  it 
off;  if  thine  eye  offend  thee,  pluck  it  out:"  for,  he 
says,  "  every  one  shall  be  salted  with  fire."  Fire 
is  used  in  Scripture  to  denote  suffering,  persecution, 
trial,  or  distress  of  any  kind.  Salt  is  used  in  Scripture 
to  denote  permanence,  or  perpetuity.  Salt  was  put 
upon  the  sacrifices :  sacrificial  language  is  employed ; 
and  the  passage  means  that  every  one  shall  go 
through  suffering  in  this  present  world ;  every  one  shall 
be  salted,  or  sprinkled — for  that  is  the  meaning  of  it 
— with  affliction.  If  that  affliction,  like  the  fire,  purify 
the  soul  it  saturates  and  touches,  happy  will  it  be ; 
but  if  that  affliction  fail  to  have  this  its  legitimate 
and  just  effect,  then  "  the  salt  has  lost  its  saltness," 
and  there  is  nothing  wherewith  you  can  be  seasoned. 
It  means,  translated  from  the  allusive  language 
of  Levi  into  the  simple  language  of  the  Gospel, 
"  Through  much  tribulation  of  some  sort  —  cares 
within,  or  losses  without  —  every  one  must  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  heaven."  If  these  afflictions 
have  a  purifying  effect,  then  you  will  find  that 
"  though  no  tribulation  for  the  present  seemeth 
joyous,  yet  it  worketh  out  the  peaceable  fruits  of 
righteousness."  But  if  these  afflictions  fail  to  have 
a  purifying  effect,  then  they  will  have  the  opposite ; 
the  salt  will  have  lost  its  savor — you  have  lost  the 
effect  of  God's  dispensations  —  and  you  will  be 
hardened  for  everlasting  misery,  not  sanctified  and 
prepared  for  eternal  joy. 


164  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 


Note.  —  The  Lord  answers  it,  by  telling  them  that  it  is  even  so ; 
and  returns  the  question  by  another  :  And  how  it  is  (also)  written  of 
the  Son  of  Man,  that  he,  &c.  ?  Then  comes  the  conclusion  in  verse 
13,  with  ukla  teyu  vfilv,  stating  that  Elias  has  come,  and  leaving  it 
therefore  to  be  inferred  that  the  sufferings  of  the  Son  of  Man  were 
close  at  hand.  Notice  how  the  yiy.  en'  avrbv  binds  both  together. 
Just  as  the  first  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man  is  to  suffer  and  to  die,  so 
has  the  first  coming  of  Elias  been  as  it  was  written  of  him  ;  but  there 
is  a  future  coming  of  Elias,  aizoKa&io-avEiv  Travra,  and  of  the  Son  of 
Man  in  his  glory. 

[38.]  The  connection  of  this  remark  with  what  goes  before  is  —  If 
the  receiving  any  one,  even  a  little  child,  in  thy  name,  be  receiving 
thee,  were  we  doing  right  when  we  forbad  one  who  used  thy  name, 
but  did  not  follow  us  1  "  Observent  hoc,"  says  Bengel,  "  qui  charis- 
mata alligant  successioni  canonica3."  This  man  actually  did  what  the 
very  apostles  themselves  were  specially  appointed  to  do ;  and  the 
Lord,  so  far  from  prohibiting,  encourages  him.  See  Numbers  xi. 
26-29. 

[39.]  See  1  Cor.  xii.  3.  The  very  success  of  the  miracle  will  awe 
him,  and  prevent  him  from  scorn  or  lightly  speaking.  "We  must 
beware  of  supposing  that  the  application  of  this  saying  is  to  be  con- 
fined to  the  working  of  a  miracle.  Verse  40  shows  that  it  is  general, 
—  a  weighty  maxim  of  Christian  toleration  and  charity,  and  a  caution 
to  men  how  they  presume  to  limit  the  work  of  the  Spirit  of  God  to 
any  sect,  or  succession,  or  outward  form  of  Church.  See  Phil.  i. 
16-18.—  Alford. 


CHAPTER    X. 

CROWDS  OP  HEARERS  —  PHARISEES  AND  DIVORCE  —  GLORY  OP 
THE  BIBLE  —  GOD  SUFFERS  EVIL  —  REASONS  WHY  HE  DOES  SO 
—  CHILDREN    BROUGHT     TO    JESUS  —  HEAVEN    PULL    OP  —  THEIR 

CHARACTER  —  BAPTISM  —  THE       YOUNG        INQUIRER  —  RICHES 

PROVERB  —  PROMISE. 

We  find  here,  as  on  former  occasions,  that  great 
crowds  followed  the  Redeemer,  anxious  to  hear  the 
wonderful  words  that  proceeded  from  his  mouth; 
and  on  this  occasion,  as  on  previous  ones,  he  showed 
that  wherever  there  was  an  audience  willing  to  hear, 
there  was  a  Teacher  willing  to  speak  to  them  the 
words  of  everlasting  life.  But  amongst  those  who 
followed  him,  were  some  who  came  not  to  hear  what 
would  do  them  good,  but  to  suggest  what  possibly 
might  ensnare  and  injure  him.  The  Pharisees,  with 
that  carping  and  cavilling  disposition  which  they 
show  whenever  they  make  their  appearance  in  the 
sacred  narrative,  put  to  him  this  question,  — "  Is  it 
lawful  for  a  man  to  put  away  his  wife  ?  "  Not  that 
they  really  wished  for  information,  but  that  they 
thought  they  might  get  him  to  make  some  remark 
upon  that  subject  that  would  involve  him  in  dif- 
ficulty with  the  ruling  powers,  or  give  them  the 
opportunity  of  exciting  the   populace   against   him. 


166  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

The  evidence  streams  from  their  whole  conduct,  that 
intense  enmity  to  Jesus  was  their  absorbing  and 
actuating  motive.  Mark  how  our  Lord  replies : 
"  What  did  Moses  command  you  ? "  See  what 
honor  he  everywhere  sets  upon  the  Scriptures!  A 
question  is  asked,  and  he  answers  it,  not  from  the 
depths  of  his  own  inexhaustible  wisdom,  as  he  might 
have  done,  but  by  a  simple  reference  to  God's  holy 
Word.  I  do  not  know  a  greater  proof  of  the  glory 
of  the  Scripture  than  this,  that  the  Author  of  the 
Scriptures  thus  appeals  to  them  for  the  solution  of 
every  difficulty. 

The  Pharisees,  who  could  quote  Scripture  too, 
quoted  one  part  of  it,  where  it  appeared  that  Moses 
suffered  them  to  write  a  bill  of  divorcement,  and  to 
put  her  away.  If  then,  why  not  now  ?  they  asked. 
In  reply,  our  Lord  unfolds  a  very  governing  princi- 
ple, when  he  says,  "  For  the  hardness  of  your  heart 
he  wrote  you  this  precept."  This  shows  us  that 
God  suffers  practices  to  exist  in  different  stages  of 
the  history  of  the  world,  which  he  does  not  approve, 
but  which  he  is  pleased  to  tolerate  for  a  time,  and 
eventually  to  overrule  for  great,  good,  and  beneficent 
purposes.  How  far  we  can  reconcile  this  with  the 
government  of  God,  it  is  not  for  us  to  show  very 
clearly;  but  that  it  is  consistent  with  that  govern- 
ment we  are  sure,  because  he  himself  has  distinctly 
told  us  so.  If  it  should  be  said  that  this  seems 
strange,  I  answer,  Why  does  God  suffer  many  other 
things  to  exist  in  the  world,  and  not  put  an  end  to 
them  at  once  ?  Why  does  he  suffer  sin  or  oppres- 
sion  to   continue   and    increase    among    mankind? 


MARK    X.  167 

Why  does  he  allow  ten  thousand  sources  of  evil  that 
he  might  silence  and  stop  for  ever  ?  The  answer  is, 
He  suffers  it,  partly  because  he  will  not  coerce  by 
force  those  whose  judgments  he  will  carry  by  convic- 
tion ;  and  partly  because  this  is  a  mixed  dispensa- 
tion, in  which  sin  and  holiness,  error  and  truth,  are 
struggling  for  supremacy ;  and  if  all  that  happens  in 
it  we  cannot  now  reconcile,  we  rejoice  to  believe 
that  what  we  know  not,  and  cannot  explain  now, 
we  shall  know,  and  be  able  to  explain  hereafter. 
However,  here  was  a  positive  practice  permitted,  not 
because  applauded,  but  because  the  infancy  of  the 
race  required  that  it  should  be  tolerated.  And  the 
very  same  explanation  applies  to  an  institution  that 
unquestionably  existed  in  the  days  of  the  apostles  — 
slavery.  God  tolerated  that  amongst  the  Jews ;  and 
the  apostles  clearly  tolerated  it  as  an  existing  institu- 
tion, while  they  did  not  applaud  it.  The  hardness 
of  the  human  heart  required  it  to  be  suffered  then ; 
but  no  one  who  reads  and  understands  the  Bible  will 
be  able  to  deny  that  the  whole  spirit  of  Christianity 
is  opposed  to  the  existence  of  slavery.  The  history 
of  that  institution  is  written  in  tears  and  blood ;  and 
in  proportion  as  this  blessed  religion  of  ours  gains 
supremacy  in  the  hearts  of  mankind,  in  the  same 
proportion  will  that  and  all  other  institutions  and 
relationships  not  sanctioned  in  the  Bible  be  dis- 
solved, and  disappear  from  the  face  of  the  whole 
earth. 

After  this  reply  of  our  Lord  to  the  Pharisees  on 
the  subject  of  marriage,  and  his  reference  to  the  pri- 
meval institution,  some  of  the  mothers  in  the  midst 


168  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

of  Jerusalem,  and  on  the  further  side  of  the  Jordan, 
brought  to  him  children,  that  he  might  touch  them ; 
but  the  disciples,  far  less  kind  and  tender  than  the 
Great  Master,  forbad  the  mothers,  and  tried  to  keep 
them  away  from  Jesus.  They  were  not  the  advo- 
cates of  early  Christian  education  ;  they  thought  the 
young  too  contemptible  for  so  great  and  blessed  a 
Teacher,  and  they  thought  it  would  be  better  to  let 
them  grow  to  maturity,  and  then  to  decide  for  them- 
selves. If  children  were  born  in  innocence,  you 
might  safely  trust  them  to  such  an  experiment ;  but 
the  fact  is,  that  if  left  to  themselves,  they  have  within 
them  the  instinctive  tendency  to  depart  from  God, 
and  it  is  lamentably  certain  that  they  will  not  only 
grow  up  without  God,  but  hostile  to  all  that  bears  his 
image,  and  is  obedient  to  his  will.  Jesus,  therefore, 
rebuked  the  disciples,  and  "was  much  displeased, 
and  said  unto  them,  Suffer  the  little  children  to 
come  unto  me"  —  it  is  the  translation  of  the  Greek 
word  that  means  "an  infant"  —  "Suffer  the  little 
infants  to  come  unto  me,  and  forbid  them  not,"  —  it 
is  the  strongest  possible  language  —  "  for  of  such  is 
the  kingdom  of  heaven."  (  This  language  is  some- 
times misconstrued.  Some  persons  think  it  is  an 
expression  exactly  parallel  to  that  employed  in  a 
previous  passage,  where  Jesus  set  a  child  in  the 
midst  of  them,  and  said  that  unless  they  became  as 
little  children,  they  could  not  enter  into  the  kingdom 
of  heaven.  It  has  been  thought  that  "  of  such  is  the 
kingdom  of  heaven,"  means,  that  of  persons  of  a 
childlike  disposition  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven ;  but 
it  really  means,  of  such  very  children  is  the  kingdom 


MARK    X.  169 

of  heaven  chiefly  made  up :  and  I  feel  that  this 
unfolds  the  precious  thought,  that  the  majority  of 
the  inhabitants  of  heaven  are  glorified  infants.  We 
know,  as  matter  of  fact,  that  half  the  human  race 
die  in  infancy ;  and  what  an  awful  thought  would  it 
be,  were  we  persuaded  that  this  half  is  lost!  I  am 
amazed  that  any  one  should  entertain  so  uncon- 
genial a  notion,  or  should  have  a  moment's  comfort 
in  doing  so.  Were  Scripture  silent,  we  might  be 
sad;  but  it  is  not  so.  It  seems  to  me  therein 
revealed,  that  all  infants  dying  before  years  of 
responsibility,  —  and  half  the  human  race  die  in 
that  condition,  —  whether  their  fathers  be  Jews  or 
Mahometans,  Christians  or  heathens,  and  whether 
they  be  baptized  or  unbaptized,  without  exception, 
are  admitted  into  everlasting  joy,  and  are  now  in  the 
presence  of  God.  Of  course  I  cannot  prove  it  now, 
because  space  will  not  permit  me ;  but  I  think  it  can 
be  demonstrated  from  the  sacred  page,  that  infants 
dying  before  years  of  responsibility  are  admitted  into 
glory.  If,  therefore,  you  join  with  that  the  other 
fact,  that  increasing  portions  of  the  adult  population 
of  every  age  are  believers,  and  that  one  day  all  will 
be  righteous,  you  can  see  that  a  majority  of  the 
human  family  will  ultimately  be  saved,  and  that  the 
kingdom  of  heaven,  when  it  shall  be  unfolded  in  all 
its  majesty  and  glory,  will  contain,  not  a  handful, 
but  a  great  multitude  that  no  man  can  number. 

He  adds  the  instruction,  "  Whoever  shall  not  re- 
ceive the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  little  child,  he  shall 
not  enter  therein."     This  indicates,  first,  that  children 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven ;  and,  secondly, 
15 


170  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

that  in  the  case  of  adults  there  is  required  childlike 
character  as  a  prerequisite  to  entry  into  the  kingdom 
of  heaven.  Now,  what  is  that  character?  It  is 
teachable,  confiding,  trustful.  Hold  out  an  orange  to 
an  infant,  and  it  will  take  it  at  once ;  it  never  in- 
quires, "  I  wonder  whether  my  parent  intends  to  give 
it  me  ?  "  The  fact  that  the  orange  is  offered  is  to  it 
the  proof  that  the  orange  is  to  be  received.  And  so, 
instead  of  quibbling,  carping,  and  cavilling  about  "  I 
wonder  whether  I  am  one  of  the  elect  ?  "  you  ought, 
childlike,  to  feel  that  what  God  offers  he  means  to 
give,  and  that  you  honor  him  more  by  saying  "  Yea, 
Lord,  I  believe,"  than  by  thinking  that  this  is  too 
good  for  you.  Sermons  should  be  childlike,  just  as 
our  trust  should  be.  But  there  is  a  distinction  that 
preacher  and  people  would  do  well  to  remember.  It 
is  possible  to  have  a  childlike  disposition,  and  to 
preach  childlike  sermons,  without  having  a  childish 
disposition,  or  preaching  childish  sermons.  A  child- 
like sermon  is  compatible  with  the  highest  intellect ; 
a  childish  sermon  is  only  evidence  of  want  of  study 
or  want  of  mind. 

He  then  "took  them  up  in  his  arms,  put  his  hands 
upon  them,  and  blessed  them."  Now,  these  babes 
were  capable  of  a  blessing :  is  it  a  very  violent  infer- 
ence to  draw,  that  babes  may  be  brought  to  Jesus  in 
baptism  ?  You  say  very  justly  that  a  babe  cannot 
exercise  faith.  That  is  quite  true  ;  but  if  a  babe  can 
be  saved,  why  may  not  a  babe  be  baptized  ?  If  a 
babe  be  fit  for  heaven  through  the  blood  of  Christ, 
why  may  it  not  be  united  to  the  outward  and  visible 
Church  by  the  sacrament  of  baptism  ?     It  seems  to 


MARK    X.  171 

me  that  we  should  not  inquire  so  much  whether  we 
ought,  as  whether  we  may,  bring  our  child  to  Christ 
in  baptism  ?  The  privilege  is  so  precious,  that  the 
inquiry  should  be,  "  May  I  ?  "  and  not,  "  Ought  I  ?  " 
I  am  not  denying  the  propriety  of  adult  baptism.  If 
a  man  has  not  been  baptized,  and  comes  to  believe 
the  Gospel,  he  ought  to  be  baptized.  Therefore,  I 
assert  that  our  Baptist  brethren  are  perfectly  right  in 
baptizing  adults ;  but  I  hold  that  we,  too,  are  per- 
fectly right  in  baptizing  infants ;  and  as  we  do  not 
object  to  their  practice  in  baptizing  adults,  I  do  not 
think  they  are  warranted  in  objecting  to  our  practice 
in  baptizing  infants.  True,  some  men  say,  baptism  is 
regeneration ;  but  we  do  not  think  it  —  this  is  dis- 
proved by  all  history.  If  all  the  baptized  were  regen- 
erated, there  would  be  no  tares  in  the  field,  —  all 
would  be  wheat.  I  know  also  that  some  parents 
have  the  erroneous  idea  that  if  their  child  die  unbap- 
tized,  it  cannot  be  saved.  Were  I  asked  to  baptize 
a  child  about  to  die,  my  answer  would  be,  "  It  may 
be  comfort  to  you ;  it  is  privilege  for  the  child ;  and 
I  will  come  and  do  so :  but  let  me  explain  to  you 
that  baptism  always  presupposes  that  the  child  is  in 
health,  and  going  to  live."  Baptism  is  for  the  Church 
militant,  and  not  for  the  Church  in  glory.  If  the 
child  is  going  to  heaven,  it  has  the  baptism  that  the 
Good  and  Great  Father  only  can  give,  and  needs  not 
the  baptism  which  belongs  to  time. 

After  this,  a  young  man  came  to  Jesus,  to  whose 
history  I  referred  when  reading  the  Gospel  of  St. 
Matthew.  He  was  rich,  but  yet  he  felt  the  want  of 
something  still,  and  asked,  "  Good  Master,  what  shall 


172  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

I  do  that  I  may  inherit  eternal  life?"  Jesus  ob- 
jected to  his  words.  You  ask,  Why  did  Jesus  object 
to  the  epithet  "  good  ?  "  I  answer,  the  young  man 
had  an  idea,  as  the  subsequent  sketches  show,  that 
such  goodness  as  we  can  attain  was  a  sufficient  title 
to  heaven ;  and  Jesus,  in  order  to  correct  his  idea  of 
goodness,  said,  "  Why  do  you  call  me  good  ?  You 
know  that  that  word  is  an  absolute  word ;  it  denotes 
absolute  perfection.  You  need  to  have  your  idea  of 
it  corrected  before  you  can  find  your  way  to  heaven. 
There  is  none  good  but  one,  that  is,  God.  If,  there- 
fore, I  be  not  God,  the  epithet  <good'  does  not 
belong  to  me.  If  I  be  God,"  as  he  has  explained  he 
was  elsewhere,  "  then  I  am  good.  It  is  an  absolute 
word,  not  to  be  used  in  that  popular  and  indefinite 
sense  in  which  it  is  employed  in  the  currency  of 
every-day  speech."  Jesus  proceeded  to  test  him : 
"  Thou  knowest  the  commandments,"  quoting  the 
last  six ;  and  the  young  man  said,  "  All  these  have  I 
observed  from  my  youth."  I  have  no  doubt  that  he 
had  observed  them  in  their  letter,  but  he  did  not  see 
that  each  law  sent  its  jurisdiction  into  the  depths  of 
the  heart,  and  charged  a  thought,  a  desire,  an  appe- 
tite, with  infraction  of  a  holy  and  a  righteous  law. 

Then  Jesus  put  the  test  to  him,  "  Sell  whatsoever 
thou  hast,  and  give  to  the  poor,  and  thou  shalt  have 
treasure  in  heaven."  And  he  went  away  grieved, 
for  the  reason  that  he  had  great  possessions. 

Then  Jesus  said,  "  How  hardly  shall  they  that 
have  riches  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God !  "  The 
disciples,  when  they  heard  this,  were  astonished  at 
his  words ;  and  then  Jesus  explained  them,  "  How 


MARK    X.  173 

hard  is  it  for  them  that  trust  in  riches  to  enter  into 
the  kingdom  of  God  !  "  Now,  let  us  understand  that 
there  is  no  more  sin  in  having  10,000/.  a  year  than 
in  having  100/.  a  year.  There  is  no  more  sin  in 
being  rich  than  there  is  virtue  in  being  poor.  It  is 
the  amount  of  trust  in,  and  dependence  upon  what 
we  have,  that  constitutes  much  of  the  danger  and  all 
the  guilt  of  what  is  called  being  rich.  The  man  who 
has  a  small  income  may  have  his  heart  as  much 
taken  up  with  it  as  the  man  who  has  an  income  of 
many  thousands  a  year.  It  is  not  the  amount  we 
have,  but  the  amount  of  trust  that  we  lay  upon  it, 
that  makes  the  deceitfulness  of  wealth.  At  the  same 
time  it  must  be  admitted,  that  when  one  has  all  that 
this  world  can  give,  there  is  much  temptation  to  for- 
get God,  to  say,  "  This  is  my  rest,"  and  never  to 
think  about  a  better.  It  is  affliction,  loss,  poverty, 
want,  that  empty  man  of  the  idols  that  filled  the 
niches  of  the  temple  that  is  within;  and  then  the 
emptiness  and  the  desolation  which  the  rich  so  little 
feel,  make  him  think  of  something  more  satisfying 
than  gold,  and  of  water,  of  which  if  a  man  drink  he 
shall  thirst  no  more. 

Jesus  adds,  by  way  of  illustration,  "  It  is  easier  for 
a  camel  to  go  through  the  eye  of  a  needle  than  for  a 
rich  man  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God."  This 
is  a  phrase  which  has  been  very  much  canvassed. 
There  are  two  Greek  words  very  like  each  other,  — 
Kaprjkw  and  ku^ov,  the  former  being  the  one  used  here, 
and  meaning  a  camel ;  the  latter  being  a  cable  rope. 
Some  have  thought  that  the  v  should  give  way  to 
the  i ;  and  then  the  text  would  be,  "  It  is  easier  for  a 


174  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

cable  rope  to  go  through  the  eye  of  a  needle : "  but 
it  is  fair  to  add  that  we  have  no  ancient  Greek  man- 
uscript with  this  reading,  or  ancient  quotation  of  it 
in  this  shape.  It  may  have  been  a  proverbial  expres- 
sion, —  the  eye  of  a  needle,  and  a  camel,  being  the 
smallest  and  largest  objects  with  which  the  Jews 
were  familiar.  Some  have  said  that  the  idea  is 
drawn  from  a  gorge  between  the  mountains  some- 
where in  the  neighborhood  of  Jerusalem,  through 
which  camels  were  accustomed  to  pass  upon  their 
knees  with  great  difficulty. 


Note.  —  [30.]  Here  Luke's  account  is  important.  To  it  and  Luke 
we  owe  vvv  kv  rib  natpcj  tovtu,  without  which  the  promise  might  he 
understood  of  a  future  life  only,  and  to  it  alone  we  owe  the  particular- 
izing of  the  returns  made,  and  the  words  fieru  dioy/iuv,  which  light  up 
the  whole  passage,  and  show  that  it  is  the  inheritance  of  the  earth  in 
the  higher  sense  by  the  meek  which  is  spoken  of,  (see  1  Cor.  iii.  21, 
22.)  Observe,  fathers  and  mothers  :  nature  gives  us  only  one  of  each, 
but  love  many.  We  do  not  read  wives,  because  Christ  does  not 
promise  aught  which  can  point  to  sensual  enjoyment,  and  because  of 
that  mystic  relation  to  the  soul  united  to  him  in  which  he  himself 
stands.  Here  follows  in  Matthew  the  parable  of  the  laborers  in  the 
vineyard.  — Alford. 


CHAPTER   XI. 

LITERAL  FULFILMENT   OF   PROPHECY  —  THE    CHILDREN'S    SHOUT  — 
THE   FRUITLESS   FIG-TREE  —  CURSE   ON    THE   TREE   A   LESSON    TO 

THE    JEWS  —  DESECRATION     OF     THE    HOUSE     OF     GOD JESUS 

REBUKES   IT — JOHN   KNOX  —  PRAYER  —  CAPTIOUS   QUESTIONS. 

In  the  commencement  of  the  chapter  I  have  read 
we  have  the  fulfilment,  in  historical  fact,  of  an 
ancient  and  very  minute  prophecy,  the  literal  fulfil- 
ment of  which  one  would  scarcely  have  expected. 
It  is  predicted,  as  you  are  aware,  in  Zechariah  ix.  9, 
"  Thy  king  cometh  unto  thee,  lowly,  and  riding 
upon  an  ass,  and  upon  a  colt  the  foal  of  an  ass." 
There  is  not  the  least  doubt  that  the  prediction 
relates  to  the  Messiah ;  but  if  we  had  not  read  the 
historical  fulfilment  of  it,  we  should,  according  to 
a  very  prevalent  and  popular  way  of  interpreting 
prophecy,  have  put  what  is  called  a  figurative  inter- 
pretation upon  it,  and  said,  "  This  cannot  mean  that 
the  Messiah  shall  come  literally  riding  upon  an  ass 
into  Jerusalem,  but  it  must  mean  that  he  will  come 
in  a  very  lowly  and  unpretending  state,  without 
pomp  or  majesty,  or  the  signs  and  shine  of  impe- 
rial splendor,  or  any  thing  to  indicate  the  presence 
of  the  King  of  kings."  But  you  see  the  prophecy 
is  verbatim  fulfilled;  and  this  is  an  earnest  of  the 


176  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

fulfilment  of  the  rest  of  the  prophecies  of  the  word 
of  God.  I  do  not  think  it  is  fair  to  say,  that  some 
predictions  shall  be  figuratively  fulfilled,  because  we 
cannot  understand  them ;  for  surely  the  God  whose 
truth  inspired  the  prophecy  is  omnipotent,  and  has 
power,  when,  where,  and  how  he  pleases,  to  carry 
out  prophecy  into  historical  and  full  fulfilment. 
Therefore,  I  believe  that  all  those  predictions  con- 
tained in  ancient  prophecy  about  Jerusalem  being 
exalted  on  the  top  of  the  mountains,  and  becoming 
the  great  metropolis  of  a  regenerated  world,  and  the 
Jewish  Church  taking  the  precedence  of  all  others ; 
and  about  Christ  being  personally  present  there,  and 
about  the  dead  in  Christ  rising  when  he  comes, 
however  difficult  it  may  seem  to  us,  will  be  literally 
and  exactly  fulfilled.  And  I  cannot  see  where  one's 
foot  is  to  stand,  if  we  give  up  the  literal  interpreta- 
tion of  Scripture,  except  where  such  literal  interpre- 
tation would,  if  carried  out,  involve  us  in  absurdity ; 
but  as  no  such  absurdity  can  be  involved  in  these, 
we  accept  them  literally,  and  believe  that  heaven 
and  earth  may  pass  away,  but  that  one  jot  or  tittle 
—  a  dot — shall  not  pass  away  till  all  these  be  com- 
pletely fulfilled. 

After  this  we  read  that  certain  persons,  and  in 
the  parallel  Gospel  it  is  said  the  children,  shouted, 
as  Jesus  came  into  the  midst  of  them,  evidently 
under  some  inspiration  from  on  high,  "Hosanna! 
Blessed  is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord ! " 
They  recognized  him  here  as  the  promised  Messiah ; 
they  sang  his  praise,  however  lowly  he  seemed  to 
be  in  this  world ;  and  veiled  under  that  face,  which 


MARK    XI.  '  177 

was  more  marred  than  any  man's,  and  concealed 
under  that  lowly  and  unpretending  aspect,  they  saw 
with  the  eye  of  faith,  which  pierced  the  drapery  and 
looked  within  the  veil,  the  brightness  of  the  Father's 
glory,  and  the  express  image  of  his  person.  And  it 
is  said  in  the  parallel  Gospel  that  on  this  occasion 
there  was  fulfilled  that  passage,  "  Out  of  the  mouth 
of  babes  and  sucklings  thou  hast  perfected  praise," 
or  "  ordained  strength."  There  is  something  inter- 
esting in  the  fact  that  scribes,  priests,  doctors,  rab- 
bis, tried  to  betray  him,  but  that  babes  and  ragged 
boys  upon  the  streets  shouted  "  Hosanna !  Blessed 
is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord ! "  It 
may  be  that  more  may  enter  into  heaven  from  our 
poor  schools,  for  which  I  am  pleading  this  day,  than 
from  noble  halls  and  imperial  palaces.  It  is  not 
earthly  pomp  that  is  the  test  of  spiritual  character — 
nay,  the  very  reverse,  for  not  many  noble,  not  many 
great,  are  called.  It  is  out  of  the  lower  strata  of 
the  earth  that  the  most  precious  diamonds  are  dug ; 
it  is  from  the  sunken  and  degraded  masses  of  society 
that  Jesus  is  selecting  and  polishing  the  brightest 
gems  for  his  imperial  diadem.  While  priests  and 
rabbis  may  say,  "  Away  with  him !  away  with 
him ! "  there  will  be  found  many  in  our  Sunday 
schools,  and  our  ragged  schools,  who  have  tasted 
of  the  blessings  of  the  cross,  who  shout  now, 
and  who  will  shout  yet  more  joyously  hereafter, 
"  Hosanna !  Blessed  is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name 
of  the  Lord!" 

A  fig-tree  was  seen  by  Jesus,  having  leaves,  and 
"  he  came,  if  haply  he  might  find  any  thing  thereon ; 


178  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

and  when  he  came  to  it,  he  found  nothing  but  leaves; 
for  the  time  of  figs  was  not  yet."  It  has  been  said 
by  some,  that  the  fruit  precedes  the  appearance  of 
the  leaves  upon  the  fig-tree,  and  that  it  was  reason- 
able to  expect  figs,  but  the  time  of  the  figs  appearing, 
though  there  were  leaves  upon  the  tree,  was  not  yet 
come.  Just  as  you  see  in  January  the  trees  prema- 
turely shooting  forth  buds  and  leaves,  soon  again  to 
be  nipped,  so  this  fig-tree  had  prematurely  leaves 
upon  it,  which  were  a  profession  that  they  em- 
bosomed fruit  in  the  midst  of  them. 

When  Jesus  came,  and  saw  leaves  and  no  fruit,  it 
is  said  he  pronounced  an  anathema  upon  it,  —  "  No 
man  eat  fruit  of  thee  hereafter  for  ever."  Now  some 
have  very  much  quarrelled  with  this  miracle.  They 
have  said  that  here  the  great  and  blessed  Master 
seems  to  indicate  temper,  as  if  disappointment  at 
not  finding  fruit  made  him  hurriedly  and  intemper- 
ately  pronounce  a  malediction  on  the  tree.  But 
there  is  no  evidence  of  any  thing  in  this  act  that  was 
either  violent,  unnatural,  or  cruel.  That  Jesus  was 
angry  on  many  an  occasion,  I  have  not  the  least 
doubt ;  but  anger  is  not  a  sin.  It  is  no  more  sinful  to 
be  angry  than  it  is  to  be  hungry.  The  apostle  says, 
"  Be  ye  angry,  and  sin  not ; "  and  very  often  a  hot 
temper  is  the  atmosphere  around  the  warmest  and 
most  generous  heart.  Anger  is  only  sin  when  it 
degenerates,  festers,  or  corrupts  into  malignant  hate ; 
and  hence  the  importance  of  that  maxim,  as  a  pre- 
ventive of  anger  swelling  into  revenge,  "  Let  not  the 
sun  go  down  upon  thy  wrath."  But  there  is  no  evi- 
dence here  of  that ;  and  it  is  a  most  interesting  fact, 


MARK    XI.  179 

that  ever  as  living  beings  came  to  Jesus,  the  subjects 
of  misfortune,  he  healed  them ;  and  that  the  only 
instance  in  which  he  pronounced  a  malediction  was 
not  upon  a  living  man,  but  upon  a  dead  and  insen- 
sible tree.  And  it  was  right  that,  whilst  there  was 
so  much  beneficence,  love,  and  mercy,  it  should  be 
seen  that  what  is  God's  strange  work  is  not  unknown 
or  impossible  to  him,  —  the  work  of  righteous  retri- 
bution. 

But  if  the  cursing  of  this  tree  had  been  a  mere 
incidental  act  without  a  meaning,  we  should  have 
been  less  able  to  defend  it ;  but  the  fact  is,  the  fig- 
tree  was  the  great  type  of  the  Jews  :  it  is  constantly 
used  as  such ;  and  we  are  told  that  one  of  the  signs 
of  Christ's  near  approach  will  be  the  budding  of  the 
fig-tree,  that  is,  the  Jews  beginning  to  awake  to  a 
sense  of  their  long  lost  privileges,  and  the  hope  of 
their  coming  glory.  Thus,  our  Lord's  blasting  the 
fig-tree,  because  it  had  the  leaves  of  profession,  whilst 
it  was  destitute  of  the  fruits  of  practice,  was  a  most 
significant  act  to  the  Jews  who  saw  it ;  for  it  told 
them  that  their  roots  must  be  dried  up,  if  they  do  not 
bring  forth  in  their  season  those  fruits  which  they 
were  planted  to  produce,  and  having  cumbered  the 
ground  one,  two,  three  years,  the  fig-tree  must  be  cut 
down,  or  wither  to  the  roots,  and  waste  away,  or  be 
thrown  to  the  burning.  It  was  not,  therefore,  an 
arbitrary  act  without  a  relation  to  other  things,  but  it 
was  an  instructive  lesson  :  and  just  as  Jesus  took  the 
corn  that  grew  in  the  field,  the  flowers  by  the  way- 
side, the  lilies  that  grew  near  him,  and  made  these 
the  mirrors  of  bright  truths,  so  he  took  the  fig-tree, 


ISO  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

blasted  and  withered  it,  not  because  it  was  criminal, 
for  morally  it  could  not  be  so,  but  in  order  to  be  an 
instructive  and  important  lesson  to  man. 

When  he  went  into  the  temple  he  found  the  awful 
desecration  that  was  practised  in  the  midst  of  it. 
Jesus  did  not  go  into  the  holy  place  of  the  temple. 
He  was  not  of  the  order  of  Levi  or  Aaron,  and  there- 
fore he  could  not  be  admitted  to  the  sacerdotal  place, 
prerogatives,  and  functions  of  the  temple;  but  he 
went  into  the  outer  courts,  and  these  outer  courts, 
instead  of  being  places  of  retirement  and  of  medita- 
tive piety,  had  become  shops  in  which  cattle  and 
doves  were  sold,  and  the  money  of  the  Romans  ex- 
changed for  the  shekel  of  the  Jews.  In  fact,  he  saw 
a  very  large  and  remunerative  traffic  carried  on  by 
avaricious  Jews  in  the  house  of  God,  on  the  occasion 
of  persons  coming  up  to  the  temple  to  give  their 
offerings  and  to  present  sacrifices :  and  Jesus  seems 
to  have  been  animated  by  a  strong  and  indignant 
feeling,  and  to  have  upset  the  seats  of  the  money- 
changers, and  to  have  said,  "  I  do  it,  because  my 
house  shall  be  called  of  all  nations  the  house  of 
prayer."  You  say,  Why  did  they  submit  to  this? 
Jesus  had  no  police  to  back  him,  no  military  to  stand 
by  him ;  and  there  was  a  crowd  of  avaricious  Jews 
who  could  have  crushed  him  at  once.  The  answer 
is,  Because  in  their  own  consciences  they  knew  that 
they  were  guilty  of  what  was  wrong ;  and  everybody 
knows  that  conscience  makes  cowards  of  criminals. 
They  felt  that  it  was  deserved,  and  they  gave  way. 
Every  one  knows  that  in  the  voice  of  high-toned 
moral  rebuke  there  is  great  power  :  so  much  so,  that 


MARK    XI.  181 

the  voice  of  the  humblest  man  who  is  right  is  able  to 
awe  a  very  great  multitude  who  are  consciously 
wrong.  Moral  integrity  is  strength ;  but  wherever  a 
"man  feels  he  is  in  the  wrong,  he  shrinks  from  the 
rebuke  of  him  who  speaks  the  words  of  righteousness, 
soberness,  and  truth. 

I  need  scarcely  repeat  what  most  must  have  read, 
—  that  it  was  upon  this  text  that  John  Knox  preached 
in  the  Cathedral  Church  of  St.  Andrews,  as  very 
beautifully  represented  by  Wilkie  in  his  celebrated 
painting,  now  engraved,  in  the  presence  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews;  and  it  was 
what  he  said  upon  these  words  that  established  that 
blessed  Reformation  in  Scotland,  Which,  with  all  its 
faults,  —  and  it  has  many,  —  has  not  admitted  any 
reflux  of  Romanism ;  for  I  do  not  think  that  of  the 
1,500  clergymen  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  there  is 
one  Puseyite.  You  may  say  that  John  Knox  and 
the  Scottish  Reformers  accomplished  the  Reformation 
very  roughly ;  but  the  practical  effect  has  been  that 
the  nests  having  been  taken  away,  the  rooks  have 
never  found  their  way  back  again;  and  perhaps  it 
would  have  been  well  if  the  Reformers  of  this  great 
land  had  just  taken  Knox  as  a  precedent,  if  not  in 
whole,  at  least  in  part,  and  had  swept  away  more 
than  they  had  courage  to  do,  —  the  result  would  not 
have  been  that  which  we  now  so  much  deplore  and 
deprecate.  But  many  people  in  this  country  have 
the  idea  that  John  Knox  was  a  coarse  Vandal,  or  a 
savage  Goth,  and  the  last  man  they  would  have 
liked  to  have  touched  the  Church  of  England.  Now, 
the  fact  is,  he  had  the  most  accomplished  education ; 
16 


182  SCRIPTURE    READINGS.  " 

he  was  a  first-rate  scholar ;  he  was  the  son  of  one  of 
the  oldest  families  in  the  country;  and  his  habits 
were  those  of  a  gentleman,  just  and  refined.  Then, 
you  may  say,  why  did  he  speak  as  he  did  to  Queen 
Mary  ?  I  answer,  he  said  what  was  true,  whether 
royalty  or  democracy  listened  ;  and  that  man  is 
worthy  of  little  respect  who  would  sink  the  apostle 
in  the  fine  gentleman.  Knox  was  a  gentleman,  but 
Knox  was  a  Christian ;  and  we  thank  God  that  he 
sometimes  overstepped  the  sensitive  courtesies  of 
the  world  in  order  to  vindicate  the  truths  of  God's 
holy  word.  Let  me  also  state  that  it  is  a  mistake  to 
say  that  he  was  the  advocate  of  pulling  down  cathe- 
drals. I  have  preached  in  some  of  the  most  beauti- 
ful cathedrals  of  Scotland,  and  they  are  not  all  in 
ruins.  His  maxim  was,  that  what  superstition  had 
desecrated,  the  preaching  of  God's  blessed  gospel 
would  consecrate.  Instead  of  pulling  down  cathe- 
drals, he  advocated  their  maintenance.  He  pulled 
down  the  monasteries  and  convents ;  but  they  ought 
to  have  been  pulled  down  much  sooner :  and  it  was 
not  Knox  who  did  it,  but  an  indignant  population, 
who  would  not,  as  some  of  our  representatives  would 
do,  treat  convents  as  lunatic  asylums,  and  put  in- 
spectors over  them,  which  is  so  far  good ;  but  he  felt 
that  institutions  which  had  absorbed  the  property, 
and  outraged  the  morality  of  the  land,  ought  to  be 
destroyed.  And  they  did  wisely;  and  monks  and 
nuns  have  found  but  little  footing  since  in  Scotland. 
And  perhaps  if  Knox's  Reformation  altogether,  with 
all  its  faults,  had  been  carried  out  here,  it  had  not 
been  worse  for  us  in  this  year  1853.     But  let  us 


MARK    XI.  183 

rejoice  to  know  that  the  Protestant  Church  is  not 
only  a  reformed  Church,  but  a  reforming  Church; 
and  that  what  was  not  done  at  the  Reformation,  it 
is  not  too  late  to  do  now.  And  we  are  come  into 
circumstances  when  every  thing  must  be  cast  over- 
board except  the  everlasting  gospel,  lest  the  vessel 
perish  in  the  terrible  storms  that  are  now  beating  on 
all  sides  around  it.  After  this,  our  Lord  addressed 
the  disciples  upon  the  dutifulness  of  prayer,  and  the 
extent  of  its  efficacy  in  expecting  fully  whatever  we 
ask  earnestly  and  heartily. 

Then  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  came  to  him,  and 
tried  to  ensnare  him.  They  said,  not,  "  Are  these 
things  wrong  or  right  ? "  but,  "  By  what  authority 
doest  thou  these  things  ?  "  Now,  just  notice  what  a 
captious  question  that  was.  They  dared  not  say, 
"  The  money-changers  and  the  sellers  of  doves  in  the 
temple  are  doing  right."  That  would  have  damaged 
them.  They  dared  not  say,  "  You  are  doing  wrong 
in  thus  acting,  and  in  thus  rebuking  us ; "  but  they 
said,  "  By  what  authority  doest  thou  these  things  ?  " 
Just  as  many  people  will  say,  "  We  do  not  deny  that 
you  preach  the  truth ;  but  have  you  the  right  succes- 
sion? do  you  belong  to  the  right  lineage?  are  you 
the  proper  channel  ?  have  you  the  right  ecclesiastical 
genealogy  ?  "  Now  it  seems  to  me  that  authority  is 
good,  but  that  truth  and  duty  are  greater  than  author- 
ity ;  and  instead  of  asking,  "  By  what  authority  art 
thou  doing  these  things  ?  "  it  is  far  better  to  ask, 
"  Are  these  things  right  ?  Is  this  truth  ?  "  If  they  be 
truths,  believe  them ;  if  they  be  right  deeds,  accept 
them :  if  they  be  wrong,  reject  them. 


184  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

Jesus  saw  the  captiousness  of  the  question,  and 
answered  the  fools  according  to  their  folly.  He  said, 
"  The  baptism  of  John,"  that  is,  his  mission,  "  was  it 
from  heaven,  or  of  men  ?  "  Now  they  ought  at  once 
to  have  replied ;  but  instead  of  that,  they  showed  their 
own  disingenuousness  by  pausing  and  cautiously  dis- 
cussing the  answer  they  were  to  give  ;  and  they  said, 
"  If  we  shall  say,  From  heaven ;  he  will  say,  Why 
did  ye  reject  him  ?  But  if  we  shall  say,  Of  men ; 
then  we  shall  lose  our  popular  influence  with  the 
people,  who  believe  John  to  be  a  prophet."  Their 
only  resource,  therefore,  was  either  to  tell  a  lie,  or  to 
be  silent ;  and  they  told  a  lie  —  "  We  cannot  tell."  But 
Jesus  did  not  reply,  "  I  cannot  tell  you,"  but,  "  Neither 
do  I  tell  you  by  what  authority  I  do  these  things." 
What  a  sinful  creature  is  man !  How  truly  does  he 
indicate  his  need  of  regeneration ! 


CHAPTER   XI.   24. 


PRATER  —  ASSURANCE. 


Are  we  to  understand  these  words  — "  What 
things  soever  ye  desire,  When  ye  pray,  believe  that 
ye  receive  them,  and  ye  shall  have  them,"  in  Mark 
xi.  24,  to  bear  a  strictly  literal  construction  ?  I  can- 
not conceive  that  they  were  intended  to  bear  any 
other.  They  are  no  part  of  an  imaginative  poem, 
but  a  simple  direction  for  all  Christians,  always  and 
everywhere.  Now,  either  it  is  true,  or  it  is  false.  I 
do  not  think  it  is  possible  to  explain  it  away.  I  think 
the  only  possible  interpretation  is  that  suggested  to  an 
honest  reader  when  he  opens  the  Bible,  and  rests 
upon  the  blessed  and  cheering  promise,  that  whatso- 
ever things  we  ask  in  prayer,  we  are  to  believe  that 
we  receive,  and  we  shall  receive  them. 

But  what  is  prayer?  I  do  not  know  a  more  beau- 
tiful definition  of  it  than  that  which  was  given  by 
the  Westminister  divines,  when  they  wrote  in  the 
Shorter  Catechism,  "  Prayer  is  an  offering  up  of  our 
desires  to  God,  for  things  agreeable  to  his  will,  in 
the  name  of  Christ,  with  confession  of  our  sins,  and 
thankful  acknowledgment  of  his  mercies."  But  is 
prayer  thus  with  all  ?  Is  it  not  in  the  case  of  many 
16* 


186  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

a  duty  ?  Is  it  not  found  in  the  case  of  others  to  be 
a  penance?  Do  you  not  feel  that  whether  you 
obtain  or  not  is  a  very  great  uncertainty  ?  and  pray- 
ing without  hope,  you  cease  praying,  and  retire 
without  expectation.  Such  prayer  is  not  that  to 
which  any  thing  is  promised  in  God's  word.  It  dis- 
honors God  and  Christ ;  it  is  unworthy  of  ourselves ; 
it  is  but  a  pretence,  not  living,  earnest  prayer. 

Prayer  is  certainly  represented  in  Scripture  as  any 
thing  but  a  weak  or  a  worthless  thing.  Elijah 
prayed  for  the  restoration  of  one,  and  it  was  done, 
Hezekiah  had  fifteen  years  added  to  his  reign ; 
Daniel  had  an  angel  sent  from  heaven  to  teach  him ; 
and  the  prayers  of  a  church  fused  the  chains  of  an 
apostle,  and  he  came  forth,  and  appeared  to  them  a 
free  man,  to  thank  God,  and  to  recognize  prayer  as 
the  instrument  of  his  deliverance ;  and  wherever  our 
blessed  Lord  refers  to  prayer  in  the  Gospels,  we  find 
him  saying,  "  Seek,  and  ye  shall  find ;  ask,  and  ye 
shall  obtain."  And  "the  effectual  fervent  prayer," 
we  are  told  by  an  apostle,  "  of  a  righteous  man 
availeth  much." 

But,  you  say,  may  we  ask  temporal  things  of 
God  ?  I  answer,  Unquestionably  so ;  and  you  may 
do  it  with  the  absolute  certainty,  that  what  you  ask 
shall  be  given  —  it  may  not  be  in  the  exact  way  that 
you  expected,  or  in  the  way  that  you  would  prefer 
—  but  it  shall  be  given  to  you  substantially  and 
really,  in  the  way  that  God  in  his  infinite  wisdom 
and  love  sees  to  be  best  for  you. 

You  say,  How  do  we  know  that  what  we  ask  is 
agreeable  to  God's  will  ?     I  answer,  It  is  our  privi- 


MARK    XI.  187 

lege  to  ask  whatsoever  things  we  honestly  feel  we 
really  need.  This  is  our  part.  It  is  God's  preroga- 
tive to  decide  what  things  are  good  for  you,  and  in 
what  shape  and  at  what  time  to  give  them.  /  To 
grant  you  what  sometimes  you  ask  under  the  excite- 
ment of  fear,  under  the  stimulus  of  pain,  or  in  a  fit 
of  passion,  would  be  worse  on  the  part  of  our 
heavenly  Father  than  for  you  to  give  an  infant  some- 
thing that  would  injure  it,  because  it  passionately 
asks  for  it.  Our  first  conviction  is,  that  what  we 
need  and  express  in  prayer  God  will  give ;  and  our 
consolation  is,  that  he  will  give  it  in  the  shape,  and 
at  the  time  when  it  will  redound  most  to  the  glory 
of  the  giver,  and  the  best  for  the  present  good  and 
eternal  joy  of  the  petitioner. 

But,  it  will  be  said,  is  not  this  statement  too  bold  ? 
Is  there  not  something  in  it  needing  to  be  diluted  ? 
I  answer,  Nothing.  If  our  blessed  Lord  has 
expressed  himself  in  such  absolute  terms  as  those 
that  I  have  read,  why  should  we  hesitate  to  put 
upon  them  the  honest  and  impartial  interpretation 
which  they  bear  ?  We  are  exhorted  by  an  apostle 
to  "  come  with  boldness  to  the  throne  of  grace." 
Again,  "  In  Christ  we  have  boldness,  and  access 
with  confidence."  Again,  after  the  apostles  had 
asked  our  Lord  little  things  and  great  things  day 
after  day,  he  said,  "  Hitherto  ye  have  asked  nothing : 
ask,  and  ye  shall  receive ;  seek,  and  ye  shall  find." 
And  it  is  a  far  greater  expression  of  confidence  in 
God  to  do  what  he  bids  us,  than  to  weigh  the  com- 
parative freedom  that  we  ought  to  use.  "Were  the 
Queen  of  England  to  offer  you  a  coronet,  or  a  dis- 


188  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

tinguished  honor,  you  would  show  the  greatest 
loyalty  by  accepting  it,  as  worthy  of  her  to  bestow, 
if  it  be  not  worthy  of  you  to  accept.  And  so,  when 
God  offers  blessings,  it  is  true  Christian  humility  to 
ask  what  he  has  pledged;  and  to  be  sure  that  He 
who  has  given  up  Christ  to  die  for  us,  will  with  him 
also  freely  give  us  all  things. 

You  say,  perhaps,  that  you  have  asked  earnestly 
for  blessings,  and  have  never  obtained  them.  If  so, 
I  think  you  cannot  have  asked  earnestly  enough,  or 
long  enough,  or  in  the  right  name,  or  believing  that 
you  would  receive  them ;  or  you  may  have  received 
them  disguised,  and  soon  you  may  find  that  you 
have  been  entertaining  angels  unawares.  You  have 
asked,  perhaps,  for  a  new  heart,  a  divine  life,  a 
renewed  nature.  It  will  be  seen  erelong,  if  the 
transformation  has  actually  occurred.  If  you  go  to 
a  physician,  you  have  to  take  his  time,  and  his  pre- 
scription; and  will  you  not  deal  with  the  Great 
Physician  as  you  consent  to  deal  with  an  earthly 
one  ?  The  very  waiting  for  an  answer  may  be  part 
of  the  cure.  Regeneration  is  so  truly  a  process,  and 
so  little  an  act ;  it  is  so  much  the  work  of  a  lifetime, 
and  so  little  the  production  of  an  instant,  that  the 
very  waiting,  looking,  leaning,  may  be  part  of  the 
great  regimen  that  God  puts  you  under,  in  order  to 
obtain  this  blessed  and  precious  result. 

But  you  say,  perhaps,  you  have  in  affliction  sought 
from  God  consolation,  and  have  not  been  comforted. 
That  may  be  quite  true,  but  perhaps  the  sorrow  may 
be  part  of  the  treatment  that  is  remedial.  We  think 
many  things  part  of  the  disease  that  are  part  of  the 
cure. 


MARK    XI.  189 

Besides,  there  is  another  thing  in  prayer  that  we 
must  not  forget.  Our  blessed  Lord  does  not  say, 
"  Pray  to-day,  and  the  answer  will  come ; "  but  he 
says,  "  Pray."  It  may  be  good  for  you  to  pray  this 
year  and  next  year ;  it  is  your  business  to  pray,  and 
to  be  absolutely  certain  that  you  will  get  what  you 
ask.     We  are  to  pray  always,  and  not  faint. 

But  let  me  now  notice  how  we  are  to  pray.  First, 
it  must  be  in  the  name  of  Christ ;  which  means,  that 
God '•will  give  on  account  of  Him  what  he  is  not 
ready  to  give  except  on  account  of  him.  God  is  as 
willing  to  give  as  you  are  to  ask ;  but  it  is  his  law 
and  for  his  glory  that  he  will  give  only  in  a  given 
way,  and  that  way  is  the  mediation  and  intercession 
of  Christ  Jesus. 

Again,  when  we  pray,  we  are  not  to  pray  as  crim- 
inals, but  as  children ;  and  we  are  to  ask  the  bless- 
ing, not  from  a  tyrant  that  reluctantly  gives,  but  we 
are  to  ask  from  our  Father,  who  is  ten  thousand 
times  more  willing  and  ready  to  bestow  than  ever 
we  can  be  to  ask. 

And  again,  when  we  pray  we  are  to  pray  in  faith. 
Pray  as  expressing  your  inmost  feelings,  and  as  ask- 
ing what  God  has  to  bestow,  what  he  will  bestow, 
what  he  has  promised  to  bestow,  and  what  you 
have  no  doubt  in  the  world  that  he  will,  in  some 
shape  and  at  some  time,  assuredly  bestow.  In  other 
words,  pray  in  faith,  nothing  doubting. 

Do  not  attach  to  prayer  a  saving  efficacy,  or 
meritorious  virtue.  Of  that  it  has  none.  Do  not 
pray  to  be  seen  of  men,  or  as  a  mere  habit,  which  is 
too   apt   to  degenerate   into  a  form.     Perhaps   the 


190  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

most  earnest  prayers  have  been  breathed  amidst  the 
bustle  of  a  city,  or  on  the  field  of  battle.  The  prayer 
that  has  shot  like  an  arrow,  swifter  than  an  angel's 
wing  could  clip,  and  returned  loaded  with  blessings 
unutterable  and  full  of  glory,  has  been  a  prayer  that 
was  couched  in  few  words,  and  offered  in  Christ's 
name.  Many  say  prayers  who  never  pray  at  all; 
and  many  pray,  who  do  not  say  prayers.  The  heart 
can  pray  when  the  lips  are  dumb ;  the  eye  can  pray 
when  no  ear  can  hear.  God  looks  not  at  the  atti- 
tude; God  listens  not  to  the  words,  but  to  the 
aspiration,  desire,  and  petition  of  the  heart;  and  he 
gives  what  he  has  promised;  and  if  we  have  not 
discovered  it  yet,  we  shall  discover  it  soon. 

James  Montgomery  the  poet  has  very  beautifully 
defined  prayer  in  these  words,  which  are  worthy  of 
our  recollection :  — 

Prayer  is  the  soul's  sincere  desire, 

Unutter'd  or  express'd ; 
The  motion  of  a  hidden  fire 

That  trembles  in  the  breast. 
Prayer  is  the  burden  of  a  sigh, 

The  falling  of  a  tear ; 
The  upward  glancing  of  an  eye, 

When  none  but  God  is  near. 

Prayer  is  the  simplest  form  of  speech 

That  infant  lips  can  try  ; 
Prayer  the  sublimest  strains  that  reach 

The  Majesty  on  high. 
Prayer  is  the  Christian's  vital  breath, 

The  Christian's  native  air  ; 
His  watchword  at  the  gates  of  death, 

lie  enters  heaven  by  prayer. 


MARK    XI.  191 


Prayer  is  the  contrite  sinner's  voice, 

Returning  from  his  ways, 
While  angels  in  their  songs  rejoice, 

And  say,  "  Behold,  he  prays  !  " 
The  saints  in  prayer  appear  as  one, 

In  word,  in  deed,  and  mind ; 
When  with  the  Father  and  his  Son 

Their  fellowship  they  find. 

Nor  prayer  is  made  on  earth  alone,  — 

The  Holy  Spirit  pleads ; 
And  Jesus  on  the  eternal  throne 

For  sinners  intercedes. 
O  Thou  by  whom  we  come  to  God, 

The  Life,  the  Truth,  the  Way ! 
The  path  of  prayer  thyself  hast  trod  : 

Lord,  teach  us  how  to  pray  ! 


Note.  —  [13.]  ov  yap  rjv  k.  a.  This  tree  was  precocious  in  its  being 
clothed  with  leaves,  and  if  it  had  on  it  winter  figs,  which  remain  on 
from  the  autumn  and  ripen  early  the  next  season,  they  would  have 
been  ripe  at  this  time.  But  there  were  none ;  it  was  a  barren  tree. 
On  the  import  of  this  miracle,  see  notes  on  Matthew.  —  Alford. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

A  PARABLE — PHARISEES  SEE  ITS  DRIFT  —  THE  ERASTIANS  AND 
THE  HIGH  ECCLESIASTICS  —  A  SNARE  —  THE  ATTACK  OP  THE 
SADDUCEES  —  THE  MILLENNIUM  AND  ITS  FEATURES  —  THE 
COMMON  PEOPLE  HEARD  GLADLY  — ONLY  TEST  OF  TRUTH  — 
A  widow's  OFFER. 

The  first  incident  recorded  in  the  chapter  I  have 
read  is  an  extremely  beautiful  and  instructive  para- 
ble, the  meaning,  the  tendency,  the  object,  and  —  if 
I  might  say  so  —  the  personality  of  which,  it  was 
impossible  for  the  scribes  and  Pharisees  to  misunder- 
stand or  mistake.  He  says,  "  A  certain  man,"  — 
according  to  the  very  common  usage  of  eastern 
countries,  and  especially  of  Judea,  — "  planted  a 
vineyard,  and  set  an  hedge  about  it,  and  digged  a 
place  for  the  winefat,  and  built  a  tower,  and  let  it 
out  to  husbandmen,  and  went  into  a  far  country ; " 
there  to  receive,  what  he  was  entitled  to,  the  fruits 
of  his  vineyard;  and  he  sent  one  messenger,  then 
another,  and  then  another,  and  each  in  turn  was 
maltreated;  some  being  beaten  and  others  slain; 
and  at  last,  having  a  son,  he  thought  that  his 
influence  and  presence  would  be  so  powerful  that 
the  husbandmen  would,  not  only  reverence  him,  but 
send  by  him  the  fruits  of  the  vineyard,  which  were 


MARK    XII.  193 

legitimately  his.  Our  Lord  plainly  taught  them  a 
great  lesson,  given  under  the  figure  of  a  simple  para- 
ble, namely,  that  God's  ancient  kingdom  was  Judea, 
that  God's  people  were  the  Jews ;  that  he  sent  to 
them  first  patriarchs,  next  priests,  next  prophets  ;  and 
that  some  they  sawed  in  sunder,  as  Isaiah,  and 
others  they  stoned ;  some  they  cast  out^  and  some 
they  scorned  and  despised ;  and  at  last,  God,  whose 
love  was  not  to  be  quenched  by  repulsion,  and  whose 
sympathy  with  those  who  were  perishing  was  not 
lessened  by  this  reiterated  rejection  of  his  interposi- 
tion, so  loved  the  world  that  he  sent  his  only  begot- 
ten Son ;  but  yet  the  result  was  that,  instead  of  its 
receiving  him,  "  He  came  to  his  own,  and  his  own 
received  him  not ; "  and  so  far  from  human  nature 
being  prepared  in  itself  to  welcome  the  holy  Messen- 
ger from  heaven,  it  had  so  fallen,  had  become  so 
debased  and  deteriorated  by  sin,  that  it  shouted,  and 
we  shouted  through  it,  "  Not  this  man,  but  Barab- 
bas."     Now  Barabbas  was  a  robber. 

It  was  impossible  for  the  scribes  to  misunderstand 
the  application  of  this,  and  therefore  they  construed 
it  as  a  parable  that  was  levelled  at  them ;  "  For  they 
knew  that  he  had  spoken  the  parable  against  them." 
Really  it  was  not  against  them  ;  but  when  a  person 
in  a  congregation  bears  a  sermon  that  tells  espec- 
ially against  his  besetting  sin,  and  lays  bare  that 
besetting  sin  in  its  motive,  indulgence,  object,  and 
all  that  is  in  it,  he  instantly  fancies  the  sermon  is 
preached  at  him.  Conscience  makes  him  a  coward, 
and  misinterprets  all  that  he  hears.  Though  it  is  a 
statement  of  truth  applicable  to  everybody  in  similar 
17 


194  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

circumstances,  he  is  so  conscious  of  guilt  within, 
that  he  construes  the  sermon  as  personally  levelled 
at  himself,  and  he  gets  an  excuse  for  continuing  in 
his  sin,  by  breaking  forth  into  wrath  and  hatred  and 
antipathy  to  the  preacher,  as  a  personal  assailant; 
just  as  Herod,  who  could  not  get  rid  of  the  words 
of  John  which  rang  in  the  cells  of  his  conscience, 
got  rid  of  John  himself,  by  commanding  his  head  to 
be  taken  off. 

Then  our  Lord  says,  "  Have  ye  not  heard  this 
Scripture ;  '  The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected  is 
become  the  head  of  the  corner?'  You  will  reject 
the  Son  of  God,  you  will  revile  and  despise  him  ; 
but  notwithstanding  that,  God's  purpose  will  be 
fulfilled,  either  with  man,  or  without  man,  or  in 
spite  of  man ;  and  that  stone  which  you  cast  away, 
as  a  worthless  block,  will  become  the  headstone  of 
the  corner." 

"We  then  read,  that  they  sent  "  unto  him  certain 
of  the  Pharisees  and  of  the  Herodians,  to  catch 
him  in  his  words."  The  Herodians  were  those  who 
knew  no  authority,  law,  or  ruler  superior  to  Herod. 
They  were,  if  one  might  use  the  expression,  the 
Erastians  of  the  day,  who  put  the  State  over  the 
Church.  The  Pharisees  were  the  high-churchmen 
of  the  day,  who  put  the  Church  over  the  State. 
Well,  these  two  sects,  who  carried  two  principles, 
each  in  itself  good,  to  an  extravagant  pitch,  came 
therefore,  and  thought  that  between  them  they  were 
quite  sure  of  crushing  Jesus,  and  putting  to  silence 
thereby  this  disturber  of  their  peace  and  unanimity. 
Now,  these  two  parties  were  the  intense  antagonists 


MARK    XII.  195 

of  each  other.  The  Herodians  heartily  hated  the 
Pharisees,  because  the  Pharisees  quarrelled  with  the 
government  of  the  civil  power.  The  Pharisees  as 
heartily  hated  the  Herodians,  because  they  regarded 
the  government  of  Rome  as  superior  to  the  ecclesi- 
astical power.  Yet,  when  they  wanted  to  destroy 
Jesus,  they  merged  their  internal  feuds  into  one  cur- 
rent of  hostility  to  the  Son  of  God.  The  plan 
which  they  adopted,  which  was,  no  doubt,  concocted 
in  a  synod,  was  as  follows :  "  They  say  unto  him, 
Master,"  —  this  was  an  empty  compliment,  and  was 
thorough  hypocrisy, — "we  know  that  thou  art  true, 
and  carest  for  no  man,  for  thou  regardest  not  the 
persons  of  men."  This  was  intended  to  make  a 
compliment  the  vehicle  of  more  speedily  ensnaring 
him,  by  doing  away  with  every  suspicion  of  their 
motive,  or  their  aim: — "  Is  it  lawful  to  give  tribute 
to  Caesar,  or  not  ?  "  Now  mark,  if  he  had  answered 
yes,  or  no,  in  either  case  he  would  have  been  caught 
in  the  snare.  If  he  had  said,  "  It  is  lawful  to  give 
tribute  to  Caesar,"  then  the  high-churchmen  would 
have  gone  into  their  convocation,  and  said ;  "  This 
man  is  a  complete  Erastian!  He  actually  wishes 
Caesar  to  domineer  over  us ;  he  wants  the  Roman 
empire  to  be  supreme  over  God's  chosen  heritage. 
Is  this  the  son  of  David?  Instead  of  standing  up 
for  the  rights  and  privileges  of  Judea,  he  is  the  advo- 
cate of  the  domination  of  the  Roman  empire.  We 
thought  the  Messiah  would  have  got  rid  of  that 
supremacy."  On  the  other  hand,  if  he  had  said, 
"  It  is  not  lawful  to  give  tribute  to  Caesar ; "  then  the 
Herodians  would  have  said,  "  Here  is  a  loyal  sub- 


196  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

ject!  He  will  not  pay  the  tribute  that  is  justly  due 
to  Caesar,  and  that  every  subject  fairly  owes."  But 
how  beautiful  was  our  Lord's  reply !  How  consist- 
ent with  truth !  how  sensible !  how  suitable !  how 
fitted  to  dispose  of  all  difficulties  of  the  case !  He 
said,  "  Show  me  a  penny.  Whose  image  and  super- 
scription is  this  upon  it  ?  "  They  saw  plainly  that 
it  was  Caesar's  image  struck  upon  it,  and  that  it  was 
his  superscription  written  upon  it.  He,  therefore, 
said  to  the  Pharisees :  "  You  see  that  this  coin  bears 
the  image  of  Caesar.  Well,  that  is  evidence  that 
it  is  Caesar's.  It  is  evidence  that  he  is  the  lawful 
king,  because  the  currency  of  the  realm  bears  his 
imperial  image.  Therefore,  render  unto  Caesar  that 
which  is  Caesar's ;  and  render  unto  God  that  which 
is  God's."  There  lies  the  distinction.  "  If  this  be 
not  Caesar's,  why  has  it  got  his  image  upon  it  ?  If 
it  be  Caesar's,  why  should  you  hesitate  to  render  it 
to  him?  Render,  therefore,  unto  Caesar  what  Caesar 
has  branded  or  stamped  as  his  own ;  and  render 
unto  God  those  loftier  obligations  which  belong  to 
him."  "  And  they  marvelled  at  him."  And,  no 
doubt,  it  taught  a  lesson  instructive  both  to  Phari- 
sees and  Herodians,  and  yet  the  Saviour  was  caught 
in  the  meshes  and  snares  of  neither. 

Then  there  came  the  Sadducees.  These  were  a 
different  class.  All  Judea  was  divided  into  differ- 
ent parties.  The  Herodians  felt  no  obligation  but 
Caesar's  sceptre.  The  Pharisees  felt  no  obligation 
but  the  traditions  of  the  elders,  and  the  power  of 
the  Sanhedrim ;  and  the  Sadducees  were  a  sort  of 
infidel   latitudinarian   sect,   whom   we    should    call 


MARK    XII.  197 

Rationalists.  They  were  the  Socinians  or  Unita- 
rians of  the  day.  These  Sadducees  came  to  Jesus, 
and  they  thought  that,  as  neither  the  Herodians  nor 
the  Pharisees  had  involved  him  in  difficulty,  they 
would  put  a  question  that  should  thoroughly  over- 
whelm him,  and  it  was  to  the  following  effect :  that 
a  woman  had  seven  husbands  in  succession.  I  do 
not  believe  the  case  was  historically  true, — but  it 
was  at  least  possible.  The  husbands  died  in  suc- 
cession ;  and  they  wanted  to  know  whether  the 
doctrine  of  Jesus,  which  they  thought  nonsense, 
could  be  consistent  with  this ;  "  Whose  wife  shall 
she  be  of  them  ?  for  the  seven  had  her  to  wife." 

Now,  it  was  really  a  very  silly  question;  but  it 
seemed  to  them  a  very  important  one  ;  and  they 
thought  that  it  would  disprove  the  resurrection  of 
the  dead,  which  the  very  question  that  they  put 
clearly  shows  Jesus  to  have  constantly  and  fully 
taught.  Now  his  answer  was,  "  Do  ye  not  there- 
fore err,  because  ye  know  not  the  Scriptures  ? " 
How  remarkable,  not  for  its  singularity,  is  that 
answer,  but  from  its  frequency.  Jesus,  the  Inspirer 
of  the  Scriptures,  appeals  to  the  Scriptures.  He 
might  have  said,  "  I  am  the  wisdom  of  God,  and 
therefore,  I  tell  you  so  and  so."  But  he  appeals  to 
the  Scriptures,  which  he  had  inspired  by  his  Spirit, 
and  puts  the  highest  dignity  upon  that  Book,  by 
showing  that  the  Author  of  the  Book  constantly 
referred  to  it  for  the  solution  of  every  difficulty. 
"  Do  ye  not  therefore  err,  because  ye  know  not  the 
Scriptures,  neither  the  power  of  God?  For  when 
they  shall  rise  from  the  dead,  they  neither  marry 
17* 


198  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

nor  are  given  in  marriage;  but  are  as  the  angels 
which  are  in  heaven."  For  in  the  resurrection,  the 
relations  that  are  beautiful  on  earth,  shall  be  utterly 
unknown.  Not  that  one  shall  fail  to  recognize 
another,  but  that  the  relationship  that  they  have 
sustained  the  one  to  the  other  as  man  and  wife  shall 
have  ceased,  when  all  shall  be  perfectly  holy  and 
perfectly  happy.  "  They  neither  marry  nor  are  given 
in  marriage;  but"  —  in  this  matter,  not  in  any  other, 
because  you  must  not  construe  a  passage  beyond 
the  case,  — "  are  as  the  angels  which  are  in  heaven." 
This  does  not  mean,  and  it  would  be  unfair  to  quote 
it,  to  show  that  we  have  not  bodies  in  the  resurrec- 
tion. Our  Lord  does  not  use  the  similitude  for  that 
purpose  at  all.  He  merely  shows  that  as  far  as  the 
relationship  and  duties  of  marriage  are  concerned, 
which  was  the  subject  in  dispute,  the  risen  dead 
shall  be  like  the  angels  in  heaven. 

Now,  this  reminds  me  of  a  question  that  has  agi- 
tated the  religious  world,  namely,  What  shall  be  the 
state  of  man  in  the  millennial  reign  ?  Some  think 
that  the  Millennium  will  be  simply  the  flower  and 
the  blossom  of  the  dispensation  that  now  is;  that 
there  will  be  greater  holiness,  intenser  happiness, 
and  that  in  no  other  respect  will  it  be  different  from 
our  present  state.  Others  think  that  Christ  will 
come  on  earth  previous  to  the  Millennium,  but  that 
men  will  marry  and  give  in  marriage,  and  that  there 
shall  be  death  and  dying,  just  as  there  is  now ;  but 
that  there  shall  be  a  chosen  few,  amid  the  glories  of 
the  millennial  reign,  wiio  shall  enjoy  exceeding  hap- 
piness, to  be  made  perfect  in  the  final  enjoyment  of 


MARK    XII.  199 

God's  people  in  heaven.  Now,  I  cannot  well  con- 
ceive either  to  be  the  correct  view ;  I  cannot  conceive 
that  it  is  consistent  with  the  idea  of  the  presence  of 
the  Lord  and  of  the  resurrection  of  the  dead ;  for 
when  Christ  comes,  as  I  believe  he  will  come,  pre- 
vious to  the  Millennium,  we  are  told  that  the  dead  in 
Christ  shall  rise  first  at  his  coming,  and  the  rest  of 
the  dead  shall  not  rise  till  the  thousand  years  are 
finished.  Then,  if  it  be  true,  as  the  parties  I  am 
disputing  with  admit,  that  the  sainted  dead  will  be 
raised  from  their  graves,  that  the  sainted  living  shall 
be  caught  up  in  the  air,  and  that  both  shall  be  in 
their  resurrection  bodies  together  with  the  Lord ; 
then  it  seems  absurd  to  suppose  that  the  existing 
relationships  of  life  will  be  then,  and  that  death  and 
dying  will  subsist  in  the  millennial  day. 

It  seems  to  me  a  pity  that  pious  interpreters  of 
prophecy  should  carry  their  interpretations  to  such  a 
pitch  of  extravagance  as  may  cast  contempt  even 
upon  the  Scriptures,  as  well  as  upon  the  study  of 
prophecy  itself.  Many  are  at  this  moment  indulg- 
ing in  views  about  prophecy,  that  seem  to  me  so 
monstrous  that  they  will  create  scepticism  rather 
than  piety.  For  instance,  the  idea  of  some  is,  that 
the  Man  of  Sin  will  be  a  huge  physical  monster, 
who  will  appear  at  the  close  of  this  dispensation, 
being,  it  may  be,  twenty,  thirty,  or  a  hundred  feet  in 
height,  armed  with  gigantic  physical  power,  and 
exerting  a  prodigious  sway  over  all  nations ;  and 
that  he  will  be  in  God's  literal  temple  in  Jerusalem, 
—  which  temple  is  not  existent,  and  if  he  build  it, 
it  will  be  his  own,  it  cannot  be  called  God's,  —  that 


200  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

he  will  sit  in  the  temple  of  God,  assuming  to  be 
God,  and  receiving  worship  as  if  he  were  God. 
Now  this  seems  so  extravagant,  that  unless  it  were 
clearly  revealed,  I  could  not  accept  it;  but  it  is  sc 
inconsistent  with  other  portions  of  Scripture  that 
any  one  who  reads  those  portions  will  see  how 
absurd  it  is. 

The  only  clear  points  that  I  can  see  in  the  future 
are,  that  Christ  will  come  previous  to  the  Millen- 
nium, and  at  his  coming  the  dead  in  Christ  shall 
rise  first;  that  he  will  reign  personally,  in  some 
way  of  manifestation  that  I  know  not,  during  the 
Millennium ;  that  the  21st  and  22d  chapters  of  the 
Book  of  Revelation  will  then  become  actual ;  no 
longer  prophecy,  but  history;  and  that  ultimately 
the  Millennium  will  merge  into  the  everlasting  day. 

When  people  begin  to  go  beyond  that,  and  to 
specify  actual  events,  as  is  done  in  a  very  rash 
pamphlet  called  "The  Coming  Struggle," — when 
they  begin  not  to  interpret,  but  to  prophesy,  —  when 
they  state  in  date  and  place  and  time  what  Austria 
will  do  and  what  France  will  do ;  as  if  another  John 
had  come  to  write  another  Apocalypse;  I  think 
such  men  are  really,  though  unintentionally,  pouring 
contempt  upon  prophecy,  doing  injury  to  the  word 
of  God,  and  leading  people  to  shrink  from  a  more 
just  and  scriptural  interpretation  of  what  is  so 
instructive  and  so  comforting  —  God's  prophecy  of 
what  is  to  be. 

We  must  ever  remember,  that  as  a  subject 
becomes  popular,  Satan  always  tries  to  turn  it  to 
his  own  purposes ;  and  as  more  attention  has  been 


MARK    XII.  201 

turned  to  the  subject  of  unfulfilled  prophecy  during 
the  last  few  years,  Satan  will  try  to  cast  discredit 
upon  it,  by  laboring  to  precipitate  into  absurdity 
those  who  ought  to  be  the  guides  of  the  people. 
In  interpreting  prophecy,  never  forget  that  next  to 
thorough  scriptural  investigation,  good  sense  and 
humble  prayer  are  the  very  best  interpreters. 

We  read  next  of  Jesus  having  silenced  all  that 
came  to  him;  and  after  having  answered  the  Sad- 
ducees,  and  told  them  that  the  relationship  of  God 
and  his  saints  remains  uninterrupted  by  death  and 
the  grave,  he  put  the  question  to  them ;  "  How  say 
the  Scribes,  that  Christ  is  the  Son  of  David  ?  "  You 
will  better  understand  that  question  if  you  will  read 
"Messiah"  instead  of  "Christ."  They  are  both 
substantially  the  same  word,  and  the  question  is 
literally,  "  How  say  the  Scribes,  that  the  Messiah 
promised  by  the  prophets  is  to  be  the  Son  of  David  ? 
For  David  himself  said  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  The 
Lord  said  unto  my  Lord,  Sit  thou  on  my  right  hand, 
till  I  make  thine  enemies  thy  footstool.  David 
therefore  himself  calleth  him  Lord ;  and  whence  is 
he  then  his  son?"  They  did  not  answer  the  ques- 
tion, but  the  question  assumes  the  fact,  that  he  was 
not  only  the  offspring,  but  the  root  of  David — that 
he  was  not  only  man,  but  Jehovah,  God  over  all. 

How  interesting  again  is  that  passage,  "  The 
common  people  heard  him  gladly."  That  is  the 
fact  still.  Every  congregation  in  Christendom  is 
composed  of  a  majority  of  the  common  people. 
They  are  less  sophisticated,  less  ensnared  by  meta- 
physical inquiry,  less  perplexed  by  the  pomp,  glory, 


202  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

and  splendor  of  this  present  world,  and  more  acces- 
sible. It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  during  the  last 
eighteen  centuries,  for  one  heresy  that  has  come 
from  the  people,  twenty  have  come  from  the  priest. 
Far  better  trust  the  prince  or  the  people  than  the 
priest.  The  best  guarantee  that  the  priest — if  you 
will  allow  the  expression,  for  I  mean  by  it  the  min- 
ister of  the  Gospel — the  best  guarantee  that  he 
shall  preach  truly  is,  that  the  people  have  the  Bible, 
and  judge  by  applying  to  the  Bible  whether  what 
he  says  be  true  or  not.  The  Bible  in  the  hands  of 
the  people  is  the  best  guarantee  for  orthodoxy  in 
the  pulpit.  "  The  Bible  Society,"  by  putting  every 
man  in  possession  of  a  Bible,  has  done  more  to  keep 
good  and  sound  preaching  in  the  pulpit,  than  all  the 
Presbyteries  and  all  the  Bishops  of  Christendom  put 
together. 

But,  says  our  Lord,  "  Beware  of  the  Scribes, 
which  love  to  go  in  long  clothing  and  love  saluta- 
tions in  the  market-places,  and  the  chief  seats  in  the 
synagogues,  and  the  uppermost  rooms  at  feasts : 
which  clevour  widows'  houses,  and"  —  how  horrible' 
— "  for  a  pretence  make  long  prayers." 

We  read,  that  "  there  came  a  certain  poor  widow 
and  threw  two  mites  into  the  treasury;"  and  it 
appears  that  the  disciples  were  admiring  the  beauti- 
ful stones  of  the  temple ;  but  Jesus  turned  his  eyes 
from  the  dead  stones  that  constituted  a  dead  temple, 
and  saw  only  this  living  stone,  the  poor  widow, 
casting  the  expression  of  a  grateful  heart  into  the 
treasury,  believing  that  she  gave  it  for  Christ's  sake, 
and  in  his  name,  for  the  cause  of  beneficence  and 


MARK    XII.  203 

true  religion ;  and  He  states  a  very  important  truth, 
that  the  splendid  offerings  of  the  rich  were  not 
so  munificent  as  the  small  offering  of  the  widow, 
because  they  gave  disproportionately  to  their  posses- 
sions, whilst  she  gave,  not  her  superfluities,  but  all 
that  she  had. 


Note.  —  [31.]  The  Lord  adds  this  second  as  an  application  or 
bringing  home  of  the  first.  The  first  is  the  sun,  so  to  speak,  of  the 
spiritual  life.  This  is  the  lesser  light,  which  reflects  the  shining  of  the 
other.  It  is  like  to  it,  inasmuch  as  both  are  laws  of  love  :  both  deduced 
from  the  great  and  highest  love  ;  both  dependent  on  "  I  am  the  Lord 
thy  God."  See  Lev.  xix.  18.  Stier  (ii.  474)  sets  forth  beautifully 
the  strong  contrast  between  the  requirements  of  these  two  commands, 
and  the  then  state  of  the  Jewish  Church.    See  John  vii.  19.  — Alford. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

WATCH  —  JEWISH  ECONOMY  —  A  FORESHADOW —  TEMPLE  —  STONES 

—  END    OP    THE    AGE — CAUTIONS  —  JOSEPHUS — SIGNS    IN     THE 
SKY  SIGNIFICANT   OF   RESULTS    ON   EARTn  —  FIG-TREE  BUDDING 

—  JEWS — THE  COMING    STRUGGLE  —  WATCH. 

You  will  recollect  that  on  a  previous  evening, 
when  we  were  reading  the  Gospel  of  St.  Matthew, 
we  had  a  much  more  full  and  explicit  account  of 
the  signs  of  the  latter  days  laid  before  us  in  the  24th 
chapter  of  that  Gospel.  This  chapter  seems  to  be 
but  an  epitome  of  the  account  there  given.  It 
alludes  to  the  same  events,  predicts  the  same  strik- 
ing signs  and  phenomena,  teaches  the  same  great 
personal  and  practical  lessons,  and  urges  upon  all, 
whatever  be  the  age  they  live  in,  "  Watch  and  pray ; 
for  in  an  hour  when  ye  think  not  the  Son  of  man 
cometh." 

There  is  no  doubt  that  part  of  this  relates  to  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  that  part  of  it  relates 
to  the  consummation  or  completion  of  the  age  or 
dispensation  that  now  is ;  and  you  will  find  that  the 
only  way  in  which  we  can  satisfactorily  explain  the 
interlacing  phenomena  of  the  two  events,  namely, 
the  termination  of  the  Jewish  polity,  and  the  termi- 
nation of  the  Christian  economy  that  now  is,  is  by 


MARK    XIII.  205 

understanding  that  the  one  is  a  full  type  and  fore- 
shadow of  the  other;  and  Jesus  frequently,  in  allud- 
ing to  the  one,  starts  by  a  sort  of  suggestive  power 
or  process  of  mind  to  depict  and  delineate  the  more 
magnificent  signs  of  the  other. 

In  the  opening  part  of  the  chapter,  it  appears  that 
the  disciples  were  struck  with  the  vast  stones  with 
which  the  temple  was  built,  and  with  its  apparent 
prophecy  of  perpetuity ;  and  they  asked  in  admira- 
tion, "  Behold  what  manner  of  stones  and  buildings 
are  here!"  Then,  what  did  Jesus  predict?  The 
utter  destruction  of  it  all.  Now,  this  was  said  by  a 
man  hated  by  his  country,  soon  to  be  crucified  as  a 
criminal,  without  patronage,  power,  wealth,  or  influ- 
ence ;  and  of  whose  history  his  enemies  asked, 
"  Whence  hath  this  man  learning  ?  "  He  pronounced 
calmly,  and  without  the  least  faltering,  that  not  one 
stone  of  that  magnificent  structure  should  be  left 
upon  another.  Either  this  was  fanaticism,  or  it  was 
the  absolute  truth  enunciated  then  and  there  by  the 
God  of  all  truth.  The  event  is  proof  that  Jesus  spake 
as  man  could  not  speak,  and  as  man  never  spake. 

Then  "  Peter  and  James  and  John  and  Andrew 
asked  him  privately,  Tell  us,  when  shall  these  things 
be  ?  "  that  is,  when  shall  these  stones  be  all  pulled 
down ;  and  also,  "  what  shall  be  the  signs  when  all 
these  things  shall  be  fulfilled?"  or,  as  it  might  be 
translated, " when  all  these  things  shall  be  in  being?" 
In  the  parallel  chapter  it  is  more  express ;  for  they 
asked  him,  "  When  shall  these  things  be  ?  and  what 
shall  be  the  sign  of  thy  coming,  and  the  end  of  the 
world  ? "      The  word  "  world "   is    used   in    a  very 

18 


206  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

vague  sense.  It  ought  to  be  "the  end  of  the  age," 
the  aldv,  the  dispensation  that  now  is ;  not  the  end 
of  the  earth  as  a  terrestrial  orb,  for  that  will  last  for- 
ever ;  but  the  end  of  the  economy  that  is  now  upon 
the  surface  of  it,  the  Christian  dispensation  of  grace ; 
and  the  commencement  of  the  great  dispensation  of 
everlasting  glory. 

Jesus  then  proceeds  to  answer  them  by  saying, 
first  of  all,  Be  more  anxious  to  guard  against  being 
deceived  by  false  pretences,  than  to  know  the  day 
and  the  hour  when  these  things  shall  be.  In  other 
words,  It  is  better  to  watch  against  moral  delusion 
than  to  be  overanxious  to  ascertain  chronological 
dates.  Look  to  yourselves  that  you  are  always  in 
the  right  place,  leaning  on  the  right  Saviour,  building 
on  the  right  foundation ;  and  then  come  the  end,  the 
middle,  or  the  beginning,  and  it  shall  be  well  with 
you. 

He  then  warns  them,  "  Many  shall  come  in  my 
name,"  that  is,  professing  my  name,  "  saying,  I  am 
Christ;  and  shall  deceive  many.  And  when  ye  shall 
hear  of  wars  and  rumors  of  wars,  be  ye  not  troubled  ; 
for  such  things  must  needs  be."  And  then  he  pre- 
dicts that  "  nation  shall  rise  against  nation,  and  king- 
dom against  kingdom:  and  there  shall  be  earth- 
quakes in  divers  places,  and  there  shall  be  famines 
and  troubles :  these  are  the  beginnings  of  sorrows." 
All  these  occurred  prior  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusa- 
lem ;  and  any  one  who  will  be  at  the  trouble  to  read 
a  Jew's  account  of  it,  that  is,  the  History  of  Jose- 
phus,  will  find  that  these  minute  and  specific  descrip- 
tions of  facts,  phenomena,  and  events,  that  were  to 


MARK    XIII.  207 

precede  the  desolation  of  Jerusalem,  were  most 
minutely  and  literally  fulfilled ;  and  therefore,  though 
this  may  be  actualized  on  a  larger  scale,  and  with 
more  terrific  grandeur,  at  the  end  of  this  dispensation, 
there  is  no  doubt  that  these  things  actually  occurred 
immediately  prior  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 
But  it  seems  that  some  parts  of  this  even  cannot  be 
taken  as  relating  exclusively  to  that  event,  or  as  being 
exhausted  by  that  ruin.  For  instance,  in  the  10th 
verse  it  is  said,  "  The  Gospel  must  first  be  published 
among  all  nations,"  or,  as  Matthew  gives  it,  "must 
be  preached  for  a  witness  unto  all  nations."  Now,  I 
do  not  think  it  could  be  said  that  the  Gospel  had 
been  preached  among  all  nations  prior  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem.  Certainly,  Paul  had  travelled  far 
and  near,  and  Peter  had  preached  to  multitudes  of 
the  circumcision ;  but  the  world  as  then  known  had 
certainly  not  been  visited  —  every  spot,  or  leading 
city  —  by  an  apostolic  preacher,  or  by  an  evangelist 
commissioned  and  sent  by  God :  and  therefore  it 
seems  to  refer  to  the  close  of  this  dispensation,  when 
we  may  expect  that  as  soon  as  the  Bible  has  been 
translated  into  every  tongue,  and  the  missionary  of 
glad  tidings  has  appeared  upon  every  shore,  and 
lifted  up  his  testimony  to  all  nations — not  after  all 
have  been  converted,  for  there  is  no  promise  of  that 
—  then  we  may  expect  that  the  tares  shall  be  sepa- 
rated from  the  wheat,  the  good  from  the  bad,  and  the 
Lord  shall  appear,  and  shine  before  his  ancients 
gloriously. 

He  then  tells  them,  in  the  14th  verse,  what  seems 
certainly  to  allude  to  Jerusalem  —  "  When  ye  shall 


208  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

see  the  abomination  of  desolation,  spoken  of  by- 
Daniel  the  prophet,  standing  where  it  ought  not "  — 
that  seems  to  be  an  idol  set  up  in  the  holy  place  of 
the  temple  of  Jerusalem,  because  of  what  follows,  — 
"  then  let  them  that  be  in  Judea  llee  to  the  moun- 
tains :  and  let  him  that  is  on  the  house-top  "  not  come 
down  to  look  for  his  goods,  but  leave  them  behind 
him. 

And  then  He  says,  "  Pray  that  your  flight  be  not 
in  the  winter,"  when  the  roads  are  rough,  and  when 
flight  must  be  slow;  "  nor  on  the  Sabbath  day,"  says 
the  Evangelist  St.  Matthew  —  not  because  the  flight 
would  be  sinful  on  the  Sabbath  day,  but  because 
the  gates  were  then  shut,  and  there  were  many  ob^ 
structions  throughout  the  country  to  a  speedy  escape. 

Then  the  19th  verse  seems  to  describe  a  much 
intense!  state  of  things  than  the  destruction  of  Jeru- 
salem. "  In  those  days  shall  be  affliction,  such  as 
was  not  from  the  beginning  of  the  creation  which 
God  created  unto  this  time,  neither  shall  be."  But 
we  are  told  that  the  afflictions  of  the  last  days  will 
be  so  great,  and  the  catastrophe,  that  shall  come  like 
a  shock,  be  so  unprecedented  and  unparalleled  for 
greatness,  that  nothing  shall  equal  them.  And  there- 
fore this  would  seem  to  refer  to  those  last  times  ;  and 
it  would  appear  as  if  Christ  left  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem  —  the  background,  as  it  were,  on  which  he 
throws  up  a  glimpse  of  the  future  termination  of  the 
age  —  and  described  the  events  and  scenes  that  are 
to  appear  immediately  before  his  coming  at  the  end 
of  this  dispensation.  From  the  24th  verse  to  the  end 
of  the  chapter,  I  think  there  is  not  a  doubt  that  there 


MARK     XIII.  209 

is  an  account  of  what  shall  precede  the  coming  of 
Christ  at  the  end  of  the  age.  "  In  those  days,  after 
that  tribulation,  the  sun  shall  be  darkened."  If  that 
be  used  figuratively,  it  denotes  the  royal  power.  In 
the  Apocalypse  we  have  instances  of  this.  "  The 
moon  shall  not  give  her  light."  The  moon  is  em- 
ployed to  denote  the  Church  of  Christ.  "  And  the 
stars  of  heaven  shall  fall."  "  The  seven  stars  are  the 
angels  of  the  seven  Churches."  "  And  the  powers 
that  are  in  heaven  shall  be  shaken."  We  do  not 
believe  that  this  is  literal,  because  if  this  orb  were 
to  be  annihilated,  the  sun  need  not  necessarily  be 
affected  by  the  shock. 

It  would  seem,  therefore,  very  natural,  and  not 
contrary  to  the  analogy  of  prophecy,  to  interpret  this 
prediction  as  implying  the  upsetting  of  imperial 
thrones,  the  corruption  or  apostasy  of  the  visible 
Church,  and  the  ministers  of  Christ  preaching 
another  Gospel,  instead  of  preaching  in  all  their 
clearness  and  purity  the  unsearchable  riches  of 
Christ. 

But  in  order  to  correct  any  mistake,  He  says, 
"Instead  of  my  coming  being  secret,  —  instead  of 
supposing  that  it  will  be  known  to  one,  and  not  to 
another,  —  do  not  forget  that  my  coming  will  be  a 
thing  so  splendid  and  impressive  in  its  character, 
that,  like  the  lightning,  it  will  be  visible  to  every 
eye ;  instead  of  its  being  a  thing  that  there  shall  be 
any  doubt  about,  ye  shall  see  the  Son  of  man  com- 
ing in  the  clouds  of  heaven  with  power  and  great 
glory.  And  then  shall  he  send  his  angels,  and  shall 
gather  together  his  elect  from  the  four  winds." 
18* 


210  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

That  has  not  yet  been  fulfilled ;  that  did  not  take 
place  at  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 

Our  Lord  gives  a  parable,  which  would  indicate 
the  sign  of  the  nearness  of  the  approach  of  this 
period  —  a  parable  of  the  fig-tree.  Now,  recollect 
that  the  fig-tree  is  always  employed  to  denote  the 
Jews ;  it  is  the  great  symbol  of  the  Jewish  nation. 
The  blasting  of  the  fig-tree  that  we  read  of  was  a 
lesson  to  them  ;  the  parable  of  the  budding  of  the 
fig-tree  is  a  lesson  to  us  by  which  to  know  that 
Christ's  advent  is  near.  The  budding  of  the  fig-tree 
at  the  end  of  the  age  is  equivalent  to  the  Jews  being 
quickened  by  divine  life,  and  showing  that  the  hour 
of  their  merciful  visitation  has  at  length  drawn  near. 
Whenever  you  see  the  Jews  awakening  to  a  sense 
of  their  ruin,  beginning  to  inquire  if  Christ  the 
Messiah  be  come,  resolving,  as  they  are  now  doing, 
to  become  infidels,  if  Christ  do  not  come  speedily ; 
—  when  you  see  the  nations  of  the  earth  beginning 
to  take  up  the  Jewish  question  politically,  and  the 
Churches  of  the  earth  taking  up  the  Jewish  question 
spiritually ;  —  then  you  may  be  sure  that  the  fig-tree 
begins  to  bud,  and  that  the  close  of  our  dispensation, 
the  reinstatement  of  the  Jews  in  more  than  their 
pristine  glory,  and  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  God, 
are  close  at  hand.  Now  just  look  round  the  world, 
and  see  if  this  be  not  the  very  feature  of  the  age. 
We  are  told  that  the  great  river  Euphrates,  that  is, 
the  Turkish  power,  is  to  be  dried  up  to  make  way 
for  the  royal  ones  from  the  sunrising  —  not  "kings 
of  the  east,"  as  it  is  translated,  —  to  go  to  their  own 
land.     One  of  the  leading  papers  said  the  other  day 


MARK    XIII.  211 

that  the  downfall  of  the  Turkish  power,  which  is 
daily  expected,  must  be  the  complete  extinction  of 
Mahometanism  itself.  The  instant  that  happens, 
you  will  see  the  Jews  returning  to  take  possession 
of  their  own  land  once  more,  and  build  the  temple 
predicted  in  the  last  chapter  of  Ezekiel ;  and  whilst 
they  are  busy  in  offering  up  their  ancient  sacrifices, 
the  Lord  the  Messiah  will  appear  in  the  midst  of 
them,  and  they  shall  then  look  upon  Him  whom 
they  have  pierced,  and  mourn.  A  further  evidence 
of  this  is,  that  in  America  a  very  wealthy  Jew  is 
collecting  funds  in  order  to  build  the  temple  of  Jeru- 
salem ;  and  only  last  week  there  was  placed  in  my 
hand  a  prospectus  of  an  association  organized  by 
leading  Jews  in  London,  having  one  of  the  Rabbis 
at  its  head,  the  object  of  which  is  to  collect  funds  to 
enable  the  Jews  to  go  back  to  their  own  land.  And 
another  remarkable  fact  is  stated  by  the  Church  of 
England  missionaries,  that  within  the  last  few  years 
all  the  fountains  and  springs  of  Palestine,  which  had 
become  utterly  dry,  have  suddenly  become  filled  with 
water,  as  if  to  foreshadow  the  approaching  opening 
of  that  Fountain  for  sin  and  uncleanness,  of  which 
the  house  of  David  and  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem 
shall  drink,  and  be  abundantly  satisfied.  All  these 
things  are  the  signs  of  the  budding  of  the  fig-tree, 
which  is  the  proof  that  that  time  draweth  nigh. 

But  the  30th  verse  has  been  quoted  as  a  disproof 
of  this  :  "  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  that  this  generation 
shall  not  pass,  till  all  these  things  be  done;"  and  in 
a  very  able,  but  I  think  most  sophistical,  discussion 
by  Mr.  Browne  against  Millejiarianism,  he  says  that 


212  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

"  generation  "  means  a  generation  of  thirty  years ; 
but  he  forgot  that  this  is  using  the  word  "  genera- 
tion "  in  its  modern,  technical  sense.  No  such  sense 
was  ever  attached  to  it  in  ancient  times.  And 
again,  he  forgets  that  the  temple  was  not  destroyed 
till  rather  more  than  forty  years  after  these  words 
were  uttered.  But  the  word  "  generation "  is  fre- 
quently applied  to  a  race.  For  instance,  in  the  24th 
Psalm  it  is  said,  "  This  is  the  generation  of  them 
that  seek  him,"  that  is,  "  This  is  the  class  of  people 
that  seek  him."  Again,  in  Homer  you  will  find  the 
word  yeved,  applied  to  a  race.  For  instance,  -yeved. 
dvTikuv,  "  the  race  of  leaves ; "  and  again  he  speaks  of 
yevea  uvdpuTruv,  "  the  race  of  men,"  the  whole  family. 
And  therefore  we  infer  that  our  Lord  means  that  the 
Jewish  people  shall  not  pass  away,  —  shall  not  cease 
to  be  an  insulated,  distinct,  and  separate  race, — until 
all  these  things  shall  be  fulfilled.  And  what  is  the 
fact?  The  Jews  at  this  moment  are  completely 
insulated  from  the  rest  of  the  nations  of  the  earth. 
They  do  not  intermarry  with  them  ;  they  have  not  in 
many  nations  the  rights  and  privileges  of  other  sub- 
jects ;  they  are  quite  separate  at  this  day,  and  they 
shall  only  be  merged  amongst  the  rest  of  the  nations 
of  the  earth,  when  Christ  the  one  Shepherd  shall 
appear,  and  the  two,  Jew  and  Gentile,  shaJJ  consti- 
tute one  flock. 

Then  the  32d  verse  has  puzzled  and  perplexed 
many,  and  I  admit  it  is  a  very  difficult  text.  "  But  of 
that  day  and  that  hour,"  that  is,  the  precise  day  and 
hour,  "  knoweth  no  man."  This  teaches  us  that  the 
day  and  hour  cannot  be  known.     We  have  distinct 


MARK    XIII.  213 

warnings  of  the  signs  of  the  day,  —  we  have  distinct 
evidences  of  the  nearness  or  remoteness  of  the  day, 
—  but  the  specific  day  and  hour,  and  the  specific 
events  of  it,  we  cannot  predict.  And  it  is  on  that 
ground  that  I  consider  a  very  clever  pamphlet,  called 
"The  Coming  Struggle,"  to  be  full  of  daring — I 
had  almost  said,  presumptuous  —  statements.  It  is 
not  an  interpretation  of  prophecy,  which  is  legiti- 
mate, but  it  is  prophesying.  Now,  no  man,  unless 
he  be  inspired,  has  a  right  to  predict,  specifically  and 
minutely,  all  that  is  to  take  place  during  the  next 
ten,  fifteen,  or  twenty  years.  One  can  see  great  out- 
lines laid  down  in  prophecy ;  one  can  see  signs  of 
the  approaching  end  of  the  age.  For  instance,  what 
can  be  more  remarkable  than  this,  that  all  the  great 
chronological  epochs  seem  to  meet  and  terminate 
about  the  year  1864?  What  is  also  more  remark- 
able than  this,  that  according  to  the  latest  analysis 
of  ancient  chronology,  the  sixth  millenary  of  the 
world  terminates  about  1862,  and  that  the  cappanofide, 
as  the  apostle  calls  it,  of  the  people  of  God  then 
begins?  All  these  things  give  token  of  the  events 
that  are  rapidly  approaching  our  doors.  But  the 
passage  proceeds :  "  No,  not  the  angels  which  are  in 
heaven  "  —  one  can  understand  that  —  "  neither  the 
Son."  That  expression  has  perplexed  many.  If 
Jesus  were  God,  how  could  he  be  ignorant  of  this? 
The  answer  is,  that  every  thing  that  could  be  said  of 
man,  is  said  of  Christ,  sin  excepted ;  and  every  thing 
that  can  be  said  of  God  is  said  of  Christ.  He  was 
God,  and  yet  he  grew  in  wisdom  ;  and  if  so,  it  is  pos- 
sible that  there  were  things  in  the  future  that  he  did 


214  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

not  know.  How  the  Infinite  can  be  finite  —  how  the 
Omniscient  cannot  know — how  Omnipotence  can 
be  weakness,  I  cannot  say ;  but  the  Bible  announces 
the  fact,  and  I  embrace  it  as  a  truth  clearly  revealed, 
but  not  luminous  —  a  mystery  which  we  shall  know 
hereafter,  but  cannot  know  now. 

However,  the  practical  lesson  which  our  blessed 
Lord  delivers  from  all  this  is,  "  Watch."  Watch 
what  ?  The  signs  of  the  times,  the  predictions  of 
prophecy;  watch  against  evil,  against  danger,  and 
your  own  heart,  —  watch  and  pray,  that  you  may 
have  grace  to  stand,  and  be  ready  for  the  coming  of 
the  Son  of  man. 


CHAPTER    XIII.    22. 


FORMS    OF    EVIL  —  SEDUCTIVE     SYSTEMS  —  FALSE     TEACHERS 

MIRACLES— THE   ELECT. 

"  For  false  Christs  and  false  prophets  shall  rise, 
and  shall  show  signs  and  wonders,  to  seduce,  if  it 
were  possible,  even  the  elect."  It  seems  from  this 
verse,  as  well  as  from  the  whole  chapter,  clearly  a 
duty  to  study  unfulfilled  as  well  as  fulfilled  prophecy. 
If  we  are  not  to  study  prophecy  that  is  unfulfilled, 
why  is  that  prophecy  given  ?  What  would  be  the 
use  of  being  convinced  that  the  Bible  is  true,  when 
all  these  things  shall  have  come  to  pass,  and  the  pres- 
ent economy  shall  have  passed  away  ?  The  future  is 
described  for  our  perusal  in  the  present.  John  begins 
the  Apocalypse  by  saying,  "  Blessed  is  he  that  read- 
eth,  and  they  that  understand  the  words  of  the 
prophecy  of  this  book."  Besides,  the  Protestant 
rule  of  faith  is  not  fulfilled  prophecy,  but  prophecy 
fulfilled  and  unfulfilled.  The  whole  Bible  is  given 
by  inspiration  of  God,  and  is  profitable.  Only  dis- 
tinguish between  prophesying  and  interpreting  writ- 
ten prophecy.  The  first  is  the  prerogative  of  a 
prophet,  and  the  latter  is  the  duty  of  every  peruser 
of  God's  Holy  Word.    The  future,  I  admit,  is  not  so 


216  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

clearly  delineated  as  the  past.  If  it  were,  human 
responsibility  would  cease.  If  I  saw  clearly  to-day 
what  would  be  the  precise  result  to-morrow,  present 
duty  would  be  merged  in  the  expectation  of  future 
fulfilment  of  prophecy.  But  the  future  is  so  clearly 
delineated,  that  I  can  see  a  dim  and  shadowy  out- 
line of  what  will  be  to  comfort  me ;  and  yet  it  is  so 
darkly  delineated,  that  it  does  not  interfere  with  my 
personal  responsibility  at  all.  It  is  a  stepping-stone 
in  the  majestic  current  of  the  years,  that  enables  me 
to  see  the  rolling  eddies  of  the  stream,  and  the  direc- 
tion it  takes. 

Now  one  of  the  warnings  contained  in  this  most 
instructive  chapter  is  that  which  I  have  now  read, 
namely,  that  there  shall  come  false  Christs  and  false 
prophets,  who  shall  deceive  many.  This  specific  pre- 
diction disposes  of  the  objection  that  has  been  often 
made  to  Christianity,  —  if  God  introduced  this  true 
religion,  why  has  he  suffered  so  many  false  ones  ? 
Why  do  we  find  Mahometanism,  a  dark  and  over- 
shadowing despotism,  in  the  East ;  and  Romanism, 
a  cold  and  freezing  cloud,  in  the  West  ?  I  answer, 
If  these  had  not  appeared,  the  objection  to  Chris- 
tianity had  been  very  powerful  indeed  ;  but  the  fact 
that  they  have  appeared  is  only  the  fulfilment  of  what 
Christ  has  foretold  :  for  he  has  warned  you  of  these 
things.  It  is  a  great  law  in  this  world  that  all  good 
has  its  shadow.  Excellence  has  always  its  imitation ; 
genius  has  always  its  mimicry ;  Christ,  antichrist ; 
Christianity,  popery.  And  one  can  easily  see  that 
truth  coming  into  a  fallen  world  can  be  treated  and 
disposed  of  by  fallen  men  in  two  ways,  —  either  it 


MARK    XIII.  217 

must  be  resisted  and  put  out,  or  it  must  be  counter- 
feited, imitated,  diverted,  and  perverted.  Satan  tried 
the  first  process,  the  extinction  of  the  truth,  the  fagot, 
and  the  fire ;  but  bis  last,  and  his  masterpiece,  is  the 
attempted  destruction  of  the  truth  by  the  imitation 
and  mimicry  of  it ;  and  this  has  been  successful  in 
every  age ;  and  just  on  the  eve  of  the  appearance  of 
our  Lord  it  will  be  more  successful  than  ever:  for 
false  Christs  and  false  prophets  will  come,  so  that 
they  shall  deceive  many. 

I  said  in  the  course  of  my  previous  expository 
remarks  on  this  chapter,  that  part  of  this  occurred 
before  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  At  the  siege  of 
Jerusalem,  one  Dosythius,  a  Samaritan,  appeared, 
and  said  he  was  Christ ;  Simon  Magus  also  pretended 
to  be  the  Son  of  God :  but  these  were  dim  types  on 
a  small  scale  of  the  delusive  and  deceptive  mimicries 
that  will  appear,  as  the  end  draws  near.  As  the 
night  closes  in,  the  birds  of  night  spread  their  wings, 
and  make  their  appearance ;  and  as  the  twilight  of 
this  dispensation  deepens,  false  Christs  and  false 
prophets  shall  appear,  and  deceive  many,  even,  if 
possible,  the  very  elect.  And  indeed  the  great  false 
Christ  has  already  appeared  —  the  antichristos,  the 
one  that  takes  the  place  of  Christ,  that  assumes  the 
prerogatives  of  Christ,  sitting  in  the  temple  of  God, 
showing  himself  as  if  he  were  God.  But  along  with 
that,  one  can  see  starting  from  different  points  of  the 
compass  evil  and  ominous  shadows  that  may  become 
consolidated  into  intenser  and  more  awful  prophets 
of  evil.  For  instance,  we  read  in  many  of  the  Ger- 
man and  American  divines,  that  Christianity  is  obso- 
19 


218  SCRIPTUx^E    READINGS. 

lete,  and  that  they  expect  the  future  Christ  still  to 
come.  Such  is  the  language  of  Emerson  and  Car- 
lyle,  and  men  of  that  school.  What  blasphemy !  and 
and  yet  what  evidence  of  the  growth  of  the  deceptive 
ones  predicted  in  the  text,  the  false  Christs  and  the 
false  prophets  who  shall  deceive  many.  And  again, 
what  is  Mormonism,  but  just  one  of  the  horrid  decep- 
tions springing  from  the  stagnant  marshes  of  human 
corruption  in  the  last  days ;  and  how  painful  it  is 
that  that  horrid  delusion  is  not  confined  to  one  State 
far  off  across  the  Atlantic,  but  is  creeping  into  Eng- 
lish parishes,  deluding  thousands  to  their  ruin  in  this 
life,  and  doubtless  to  their  ruin  in  the  life  to  come. 

But  it  is  possible  to  have  a  false  Christ,  and  yet 
not  to  renounce  the  name  of  Christians,  or  accept  a 
palpable  pretender  in  his  room  or  stead.  Whatever 
you  place  in  the  room  of  Christ,  —  not  in  the  creed 
that  you  repeat,  but  in  the  theology  of  your  heart, 

—  that  is  practically  and  personally  to  you  a  false 
Christ,  or  one  in  the  room  of  Christ.  If  you  take 
the  Church  for  your  Saviour,  as  thousands  do,  you 
are  worshipping  a  false  Christ.  If  you  put  fasting 
or  feasting,  the  sacrament  of  Baptism,  or  the  sacra- 
ment of  the  Lord's  Supper;  if  you  put  your  good- 
ness, or  your  virtues,  or  any  thing  you  are,  or  have 
done,  as  the  ground  of  your  acceptance  before  God, 
you  clothe  a  human  thing  with  divine  attributes,  and 
you  have  taken  another  Christ,  another  Saviour,  and 
thereby  another  Gospel.  In  the  realm  of  spiritual 
things  —  by  which  I  do  not  mean  ecclesiastical  things 

—  Christ  is  the  only  King  to  rule  yon,  the  only 
Prophet  to  teach  you,  the  only  Priest  that  died  for 


MARK    XIII.  219 

you,  and  that  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for 
you.  Beware,  then,  lest  under  the  guise  of  humility 
you  are  trusting  to  a  false  Christ ;  beware,  lest  under 
the  assumed  name  of  high-churehmanship  we  are 
losing  sight  of  him  who  is  the  Lord  and  Head  of 
the  Church,  Jesus  Christ.  It  matters  not  that  it  be 
a  divine  or  a  true  thing,  if  you  put  it  in  Christ's 
place,  you  make  it  your  Saviour,  and  you  are  one  of 
those  who  are  seduced  to  believe  a  lie. 

But  not  only  are  false  Christs  to  appear,  but  also 
false  prophets.  Such  false  saviours  will  also  have 
their  false  preachers  or  ministers.  A  prophet  here 
does  not  mean  one  who  predicts  future  events,  but  a 
teacher  or  preacher.  Nov/  I  do  not  say  that  every 
communicant  is  capable  of  discriminating  between 
what  is  the  truth  and  what  is  not,  but  I  do  say 
that  every  true  Christian  is  capable  of  pronouncing 
whether  a  sermon  be  the  Gospel  or  not;  "for  ye 
have  an  unction  of  the  Holy  One,  and  ye  know  all 
things."  These  false  prophets  may  be  gifted  with 
extraordinary  eloquence ;  but  that  only  makes  them 
the  more  dangerous,  and  the  more  fitted  to  seduce  ; 
not  more  scriptural. 

Again,  these  false  teachers  may  be  men  of  the 
most  blameless  lives.  There  is  not  always  a  corrupt 
life  with  a  corrupt  creed,  just  as  there  is  not  always 
a  holy  life  with  a  true  creed.  Tertullian,  who  intro- 
duced mischievous  errors  into  the  early  ante-Nicene 
Church,  was  one  of  the  most  exemplary  men  of  his 
age ;  and  the  late  gifted  Edward  Irving  was  one  of 
the  most  upright  and  consistent  men  who  ever  lived. 
I  have  no  doubt  that  with  many  errors  he  held  the 


220  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

truth  firmly  in  his  heart  to  the  last,  and  that  he  died 
in  the  knowledge,  as  he  has  now  entered  into  the 
enjoyment,  of  Christ  and  him  crucified.  Thus 
Satan  may  make  use  of  great  moral  excellence,  and 
may  thus  seduce  many. 

But  more  than  that,  these  false  prophets,  we  are 
told,  shall  show  signs  and  wonders.  Some  of 
these  may  be  the  mere  products  of  skill,  perverted 
by  the  wickedness  of  man  to  proselyte  to  tenets  that 
are  evil.  They  may  be  mere  legerdemain  so  success- 
fully done,  that  men  may  be  induced  to  believe  that 
it  is  supernatural,  or  a  miracle  from  God.  I  believe 
that  the  great  mass  of  Romish  miracles  have  been 
of  this  stamp :  but  at  the  same  time  I  have  no  doubt 
that  many  of  the  deeds  done  by  the  Church  of  Rome 
have  been  supernatural.  But  her  last  days  will  be 
her  most  splendid  and  her  most  successful  ones.  If 
Satan  be  permitted  to  actuate  the  human  mind, 
surely  it  is  not  saying  too  much,  when  we  believe 
that  he  will  be  able  to  do  physical  supernatural 
wonders.  But  if  I  were  to  see  a  man  perform 
miracles  in  order  to  convince  me  that  the  worship  of 
the  Virgin  Mary  was  lawful,  I  should  not  in  the 
least  be  moved.  I  should  be  grieved  that  Satan 
should  have  such  power,  whilst  I  should  rejoice  that 
it  is  but  for  a  little  season,  and  that  soon  he  will  be 
cast  into  chains,  and  Christ  reign  from  sea  to  sea, 
and  from  the  river  to  the  ends  of  the  earth.  What 
are  called  "  spirit  rappings "  are  by  worthless  men 
had  recourse  to  for  nefarious  ends.  And  what  is  a 
most  striking  fact,  Owen,  the  great  apostle  of  infi- 
delity,  has   actually  expressed   his    belief  in   these 


MARK    XIII.  221 

absurdities,  that  are  now  filling  some  of  the  lunatic 
asylums  in  America  with  their  victims.  And  as  if 
to  show  the  nature  of  the  system,  they  have  had  the 
spirits  of  Voltaire  and  Rousseau  declaring  that  they 
are  in  glory  everlasting.  Satan  is  here  just  as  in 
any  other  wickedness.  Thus,  then,  we  may  expect 
that  false  Christs  and  false  prophets  will  arise,  and 
will  deceive  many. 

But  there  is  one  class  exempt ;  and  if  we  belong  to 
that  class,  neither  life  nor  death  shall  be  able  to 
separate  us  from  the  love  of  God  that  is  in  Christ 
Jesus.  "  I  give  unto  them,"  says  the  Saviour, 
"  eternal  life ;  and  none  shall  pluck  them  out  of  my 
hand."  Now,  who  are  the  elect  ?  First,  they  are 
chosen  in  Christ.  Why  are  they  selected?  The 
answer  is,  "  Even  so,  Father :  thus  it  seemed  good 
in  thy  sight."  When  were  they  chosen?  Before 
the  foundation  of  the  world.  Therefore,  they  are  not 
chosen  because  they  are  holy,  but  that  they  should 
be  holy.  When  man  selects  a  friend,  it  is  because 
in  that  friend  there  is  something  beautiful  or  attrac- 
tive ;  but  when  God  chooses  a  lost  sinner,  he  chooses 
him  in  spite  of  all  that  is  deformed  and  depraved,  in 
order  to  reconstitute  him  a  son  of  God,  and  an  heir 
of  everlasting  glory.  The  only  evidence  of  election 
in  heaven  is  holiness  of  character  on  earth.  If  we 
are  elect,  we  regard  God  as  a  Father.  Now  many 
people  feel  as  if  God  were  an  exactive  tyrant  and 
taskmaster.  They  pray  to  him,  and  praise  him  in 
terror ;  they  open  the  Bible  as  an  awful  book ;  they 
think  of  religion  as  a  very  sepulchral  thing.  But 
these  cannot  be  Christians,  or  they  are  weak  ones. 
19* 


222  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

Christianity  is  a  joyous  thing.  God  is  our  Father; 
all  Christians  are  our  brethren ;  and  heaven  is  our 
happy  home  beyond  the  skies,  the  meeting  place  of 
all  we  loved  on  earth. 

Now  this  happy  band,  the  elect,  shall  never  be 
deceived.  They  shall  glory  only  in  the  cross  of 
Christ;  they  shall  hold  fast  the  Bible  alone  as  their 
rule  of  faith ;  and  they  will  look  upon  that  as  the 
best  Church  that  tells  them  most  plainly  the  only 
way  to  heaven.  So  believing,  so  trusting,  so  hoping, 
nothing  shall  separate  them  from  the  love  of  God. 
Your  only  safety,  my  dear  friends,  is  within  the 
Bible.  Ask  not  what  men  say  of  it,  but  what  it 
says  of  them.  Search  the  Scriptures ;  and  may 
God  enable  us  all  there  to  read  our  title  to  the  skies, 
and  so  to  have  perfect  safety  and  perfect  peace. 


Note.  —  [33-37.]  Peculiar  to  Mark,  and  contains  the  condensed 
matter  of  Matt.  xv.  43-47,  and  perhaps  an  allusion  to  the  parable  of 
the  talents  in  Matt.  xxv.  The  dvpopbg  is  the  door  porter,  whose  office 
it  would  be  to  look  out  for  approaching  travellers,  answering  especially 
to  the  ministers  of  the  word,  who  are  (Ezek.  xxxiii.)  watchmen  to 
God's  Church.—  Alford. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

ENMITY     OP     THE     PRIESTS W03IAN     AND     PRECIOUS    PERFUME  — 

JUDAS  —  LAST  PASSOVER  —  PROPHECY  OF  BETRAYAL  —  LORD'S 
SUPPER  —  TRANSUBSTANTIATION  —  PETER'S  SELF-CONFIDENCE  ->- 
GETHSEMANE  — BETRAYAL   BY   JUDAS  —  PETER'S   DENIAL. 

The  first  fact  recorded  in  the  chapter  I  have  read, 
is  a  statement  of  the  bitter  and  malignant  conspiracy 
of  the  chief  priests  and  the  scribes  against  Jesus,  and 
their  anxiety,  at  all  hazards,  to  get  rid  of  him  by 
putting  him  to  death.  They  would  not  accept  the 
truths  that  he  enunciated,  they  would  not  obey  the 
precepts  that  he  laid  down ;  and  therefore,  in  order 
to  quiet  their  own  consciences,  and  to  be  rid  of  him 
who  wisely  and  faithfully  had  rebuked  them,  they 
determined,  at  all  hazards,  to  put  him  to  death. 

While  he  was  in  the  house  of  Simon  the  leper  at 
meat,  a  woman  came,  and  took  a  box  of  precious 
perfume,  as  it  ought  to  be  rendered,  and  broke  the 
seals  of  it,  and  poured  it  upon  his  head,  at  which 
some  of  the  disciples  were  offended ;  but  Jesus 
explained  to  them  that  she  had  done  it  with  pro- 
phetic import,  with  reference  to  his  coming  burial, 
and  that  this  fact  should  be  spoken  of  her  through- 
out all  the  world  as  a  memorial  of  her. 

We  have  next  the  record  of  the  awful  incidents  at 


224 


SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 


the  close  of  this  wonderful  biography :  and  among 
the  first  the  conduct  of  Judas  Iscariot,  "  one  of  the 
twelve,"  —  what  emphasis  is  there  in  these  words! 
one  of  those  who  had  been  chosen  by  him,  blessed 
by  him,  —  "  one  of  the  twelve,  went "  —  out  of  ava- 
ricious motives  —  "  to  the  chief  priests,"  and  offered 
to  betray  him.  They  were  too  happy  to  find  a  dis- 
ciple, intimately  acquainted  with  him,  ready  to  give 
him  up  into  their  hands  to  be  taken;  "and  they 
covenanted  with  him,"  as  we  are  told  in  another 
Gospel,  "  for  thirty  pieces  of  silver." 

And  then  we  read,  that  the  first  day  of  unleav- 
ened bread  came.  This  is  an  episode  that  comes  in 
in  the  history  of  his  betrayal.  At  the  time  of  the 
Passover  he  wished  to  go  to  eat  the  feast, — the  last 
rite  that  he  should  celebrate  in  the  Jewish  economy, 
—  and  to  make  it  the  preface  to  the  standing  rite  or 
sacrament,  to  be  observed  in  the  Christian  Church 
by  all  nations. 

They  asked  him  where  they  should  go  to  eat  the 
Passover.  He  told  them  to  go  into  the  city,  and, 
seeing  what  they  could  not  see,  with  prophetic  fore- 
sight he  told  them  that  they  should  meet  a  man 
bearing  a  pitcher  of  water,  and  that  they  should 
follow  him,  and  wherever  he  should  go  in,  they 
should  say  "  to  the  goodman  of  the  house,  The  Mas- 
ter saith,  Where  is  the  guestchamber,  where  I  shall 
eat  the  passover  with  my  disciples  ? "  and  that  he 
should  show  them  "  a  large  upper  room,  furnished 
and  prepared,"  where  they  were  to  make  ready. 
That  upper  room  was  not  the  worst  room  in  the 
house,  but  really  the  best;  it  was  a  room  sequestered 


MARK    XIV.  225 

from  the  tumult,  the  din,  and  the  disturbance  of  a 
populous  city.  In  that  room  he  celebrated  the  pass- 
over.  It  was  at  this  institution  that  he  announced 
to  them,  "  One  of  you  which  eateth  with  me  shall 
betray  me."  What  a  very  sad  and  sorrowful 
announcement.  They  all  "  began  to  be  sorrowful," 
—  and  no  wonder, — "and  to  say  unto  him  one  by 
one,  Is  it  I  ?  and  another  said,  Is  it  I  ?  "  That  other 
was  unquestionably  Judas.  The  first  to  suspect 
himself  was  the  innocent,  the  last  to  suspect  him- 
self was  the  guilty  one.  This  shows  that  innocence 
may  be  suspicious  of  its  strength  to  stand,  while 
guilt  may  remain  silent,  and  betray  no  feeling  of  the 
awfulness  and  criminality  of  the  act  it  is  about  to 
perpetrate.  Then  he  warned  them  —  "The  Son  of 
man  indeed  goeth,  as  it  is  written  of  him ;  but  woe 
to  that  man  by  whom  the  Son  of  man  is  betrayed ! 
good  were  it  for  that  man  if  he  had  never  been 
born."  Now,  is  it  possible  to  conceive  that  future 
ruin  is  a  temporary  suffering,  or  any  tolerable  suffer- 
ing, when  Jesus  says  that  in  such  a  case  life  is  a 
load,  birth  a  calamity,  and  that  it  had  been  better 
for  the  man  that  is  the  doomed  inheritor  of  eternal 
misery  that  he  had  never  known  what  life  was? 
How  terrible  must  that  ruin  be,  when  it  is  said, 
Better  had  it  been  that  the  ruined  man  had  never 
been  born,  than  be  the  victim  and  the  subject  of  it. 

He  then  institutes  and  celebrates  the  Lord's  Sup- 
per. "  He  took  bread"  — the  simplest,  the  common- 
est, I  may  say,  the  universally  accessible  element — 
not  a  grand  thing,  which  man  would  take  to  cele- 
brate a  grand  feast,  but  a  simple  thing,  to  remember 


226  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

a  sublime  sacrifice.  "  He  took  bread,  and  blessed, 
and  brake  it,  and  gave  to  them,  and  said,  Take,  eat : 
this  is  my  body."  Now,  would  an  honest  mind  for 
a  moment  suppose  that  that  meant  that  he  turned 
the  bread  that  he  gave  into  the  very  flesh  that  he 
then  was  ? 

Was  there  at  the  first  supper  one  flesh  that  they 
saw,  and  another  flesh  that  they  ate,  and  yet  not 
two  bodies,  but  one  body  ?  The  words  of  consecra- 
tion, or  rather,  the  words  of  transubstantiation,  as 
they  are  called  in  the  Missal,  are,  "  This  is  my 
body ; "  and  it  was  a  dispute  amongst  the  ancient 
schoolmen  whether  the  change  took  place  at  "  this," 
or  at  "  is,"  or  at  "  my,"  or  at  "  body."  All  said  that 
it  was  during  the  utterance  of  these  four  words 
that  the  change  took  place.  But  it  is  plain  from 
the  narrative  that  the  bread  had  been  taken  and 
eaten  before  the  transubstantiating  words  were  pro- 
nounced; so  that,  according  to  their  own  showing, 
it  was  not  transubstantiated  till  taken,  broken,  and 
eaten.  But  suppose  the  words,  "  This  is  my  body," 
did  really  turn  the  bread  into  flesh,  it  does  not  fol- 
low that  because  Christ  did  it,  a  Roman  Catholic 
priest  can  do  it.  Christ  said,  "  Let  there  be  light," 
and  there  was  light ;  but  it  does  not  follow  that  if  a 
priest  were  to  stand  and  say,  "  Let  there  be  light," 
there  would  be  light.  Unless,  therefore,  there  had 
been  the  investiture  with  special  power  of  doing 
the  very  miracle  that  Christ  did,  there  could  be  no 
power;  therefore,  if  there  were  transubstantiation  in 
the  first  instance,  it  does  not  follow  that  any  priest, 
or  a  thousand  priests  in   a  thousand  parts  of  the 


MARK    XIV.  227 

world,  can  do  it  ever  afterwards.  Every  Sunday 
morning,  every  priest  in  Christendom  believes  that 
upon  some  twenty  or  thirty  thousand  altars,  the 
instant  the  words  are  uttered,  Hoc  enim  est  corpus 
maim,  upon  each  altar  is  the  body,  soul,  and  divinity 
of  Christ;  and  Christ  had  but  one  body,  but  still 
they  say  that  upon  each  altar  there  is  a  true  body, — 
a  complete  and  perfect  Christ.  They  are  the  advo- 
cates of  literal  interpretation  ;  but  the  fact  is,  they 
are  the  most  figurative  interpreters  of  any.  They 
say  that  that  bread  is  turned  into  the  soul,  as  well 
as  body,  and  the  divinity  of  the  Son  of  God ;  so 
that,  instead  of  interpreting  literally,  as  they  profess 
to  do,  they  are  the  most  figurative  interpreters  who 
could  possibly  touch  the  passage. 

Remember,  this  ordinance  took  place  upon  the 
feast  of  the  passover,  which  consisted  in  eating  the 
flesh  of  the  roasted  lamb  laid  upon  the  table,  over 
which  one  said,  "  This  is  the  Lord's  passover."  The 
word  Passover  means  an  angel  passing  by  the  first- 
born of  Israel,  because  there  was  blood  upon  the 
door-posts,  and  smiting  the  first-born  of  Pharaoh, 
because  there  was  not.  Well,  did  the  ancient  Isra- 
elite father  understand,  that  when  the  officiating 
person  said,  "  This  is  the  Lord's  passover,"  the 
roasted  lamb  was  instantly  turned  into  an  angel 
flying  through  Egypt,  smiting  the  first-born  here, 
and  sparing  them  there  ?  No  ;  because  he  had  com- 
mon sense ;  he  attached  no  such  interpretation  to 
the  words.  And  so  here;  our  Lord  took  the  very 
words  of  the  passover,  and  applied  them  to  a  similar 
festival:   it   is   the   same   formula,   and   plainly   he 


228  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

meant  the  words  to  be  used  in  the  very  same  sense. 
Recollect  what  we  showed  when  we  explained  the 
book  of  Exodus.  You  will  find  that  the  words 
"mean  ye"  are  in  italics:  in  the  original  Hebrew  it 
is,  "  What  is  this?"  but  our  translators  have  very 
properly  rendered  it,  "  What  mean  ye  by  this  ? " 
and  the  answer  is,  "  This  is  the  Lord's  passover,"  — 
that  is  what  we  mean  by  it.  And  so  this  passage 
means,  "This  represents  my  body;  and  recalls  to 
your  mind  the  blessed  truth  that  I  became  man,  and 
died  for  your  sins,  to  procure  your  salvation." 

Then  he  took  the  cup,  and  gave  thanks,  and  gave 
it  to  them,  and  they  all  drank  of  it;  "and  he  said 
unto  them,  This  is  my  blood  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, which  is  shed  for  many."  Observe,  again,  if 
you  insist  upon  the  literal  interpretation,  how  absurd 
it  is.  He  took  the  cup,  and  he  said,  "  This  cup  is 
my  blood : "  then,  if  we  interpret  this  clause  as  they 
did  the  former,  the  cup  was  transubstantiated  into 
blood,  which  is  absurd.  Our  Lord,  therefore,  uses 
a  figure  when  he  says,  "  This  cup" — using  cup  for 
the  contents  of  the  cup  —  "is  my  blood  of  the  New 
Testament,  which  is  shed  for  many."  Besides,  does 
he  not  call  it,  after  consecration,  "the  fruit  of  the 
vine?"  —  not  flesh,  not  blood.  In  the  former  Gos- 
pel, when  he  speaks  of  the  cup,  he  says,  "  Drink  ye 
all  of  it;"  and  of  this  cup  it  is  recorded,  "They 
all  drank  of  it."  It  is  not  said  of  the  bread,  "  They 
all  ate  of  it;"  but  it  is  said  of  the  cup,  "  They  all 
drank  of  it."  Hence,  if  in  the  Church  of  Rome 
they  had  withheld  the  bread,  and  not  the  cup,  they 
would  have  had  a  shadow  of  a  pretext  for  so  doing; 


MARK    XIV.  229 

but  their  withholding  the  cup  was  the  very  worst 
alternative  that  the  skill  and  tact  of  a  Jesuit  might 
be  expected  to  adopt;  because  the  word  "all"  is 
repeated,  —  so  that  it  seems  impossible  to  misunder- 
stand this  to  mean,  that  since  all  were  to  take  of  the 
bread  by  implication,  all  were  to  partake  of  the  cup 
as  a  binding  obligation. 

Jesus  predicted,  "  All  ye  shall  be  offended  because 
of  me  ; "  it  is  written,  "  I  will  smite  the  shepherd,  and 
the  sheep  shall  be  scattered."  Then  Peter,  ever  first 
to  profess,  and  first  to  repent,  first  to  smite,  and  first 
to  forsake,  instantly  said,  "  Although  all  shall  be 
offended,  yet  will  not  I."  What  a  rebuke  was  here 
to  self-confidence !  "  Let  him  that  standeth  take 
heed  lest  he  fall."  And  he  repeated  his  statement, 
"  If  I  should  die  with  thee,  I  will  not  deny  thee  in 
anywise.  Likewise  also  said  they  all;"  but  prob- 
ably in  a  more  subdued  tone. 

He  then  took  Peter,  and  James,  and  John,  and 
brought  them  into  near  and  solemn  contact  with  his 
mysterious  agony,  as  he  endured  in  the  garden  of 
Gethsemane.  What  mysterious  language,  —  "If  it 
were  possible."  It  was  not  want  of  power,  but  great 
love :  the  cords  that  bound  him  to  the  cross  were  his 
own  love.  And  he  said,  "  Abba,  Father,  all  things  are 
possible  unto  thee ;  take  away  this  cup  from  me ; 
nevertheless,  not  what  I  will,  but  what  thou  wilt." 
This  shows  us  that  Jesus  had  a  nature  truly  human  ; 
and  teaches  us  that  it  is  not  natural  to  wish  for  sick- 
ness, or  sorrow,  or  death  :  it  is  man's  privilege  to  pray 
that  he  may  not  have  pain  or  suffering  —  Jesus  did 
so :  there  is  no  sin  in  shrinking  from  what  is  painful, 
20 


230  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

there  is  only  sin  when  the  shrinking  is  so  violent  that 
it  resists  the  clear  will  of  our  Father  in  heaven. 
Human  nature  cried  in  the  agony  of  Jesus,  "  Take 
this  cup  from  me ; "  but  the  great  model  and  exem- 
plar of  all  saints  added,  "  Not  as  I  will,  but  as  thou 
wilt."  Simon  Peter,  who  was  the  first  to  make  such 
a  loud  profession,  was  the  very  first  to  fall  asleep. 
What  a  rebuke  is  here  to  loud  profession !  It  is  not 
always  the  loudest  professor  who  is  the  best  prac- 
tiser.  Peter  was  the  very  first  to  fall  asleep,  when  he 
ought  to  have  been  watching  and  praying  lest  he 
should  enter  into  temptation. 

We  read,  after  this,  that  "while  he  yet  spake, 
cometh  Judas,"  and  made  the  symbol  of  friendship, 
especially  in  that  Eastern  land,  to  be  the  signal  of 
the  betrayal  of  his  blessed  Master ;  he  came  and 
kissed  him,  and  warned  the  chief  priests  that  that 
was  the  man  ;  and  they  took  him,  and  led  him  away. 
Jesus  meekly  remonstrates,  and  asks  them  why  and 
wherefore :  they  had  no  excuse  to  give ;  and  he  was 
led  away  to  the  high-priest.  And  then,  to  show  what 
Peter's  loud  profession  was  worth,  it  is  said,  Peter 
followed  him  "  afar  off."  He  began  to  be  frightened 
for  his  own  safety :  he  did  not  wish  to  desert  him, 
but  he  did  not  like  to  be  in  the  van ;  he  therefore  fell 
into  the  rear,  ready  for  escape,  if  escape  should  be 
necessary ;  and  also  in  a  position  in  which  he  might, 
without  committing  himself  to  hazard,  be  prepared 
for  some  act  to  warrant  his  loud  profession  ;  he  loved 
his  Master,  he  loved  himself  apparently  more.  And 
when  he  followed  afar  off,  we  read  that  he  went  into 
the  palace  of  the  high-priest,  and  sat  —  where  he  had 


MARK    XIV.  231 

no  business  to  sit  —  with  the  servants,  "  and  warmed 
himself  at  the  fire."  What  had  he  to  do  with  the 
enemies  of  his  blessed  Master  ?  If  he  went  to  preach 
to  them,  he  was  right ;  but  if  he  went  to  sit  down 
with  them,  as  if  he  were  not  a  follower  of  Christ,  it 
was  a  desertion  of  his  Lord. 

We  read  that  "  there  arose  certain,  and  bare  false 
witness  against  him,  saying,  We  heard  him  say,  I 
will  destroy  this  temple  that  is  made  with  hands,  and 
within  three  days  I  will  build  another,  made  without 
hands."  Here  is  a  specimen  of  tradition.  Jesus  did 
not  say,  "  I  will  destroy  this  temple  that  is  made 
with  hands,"  but  he  spoke  of  his  own  body.  But 
these  witnesses  so  contradicted  themselves,  that  their 
testimony  could  not  have  been  received  except  by 
judges  whose  minds  were  made  up  to  condemn. 
Jesus  then  enunciated  a  striking  truth,  — "  Ye  shall 
see  the  Son  of  man  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of 
power,  and  coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven."  Then 
the  high-priest  said  that  this  was  blasphemy,  and 
they  pronounced  him  worthy  of  death.  So  he  was, 
if  he  was  not  more  than  man  ;  if  he  was  not 
the  Christ,  he  was  guilty  of  blasphemy.  But  we 
know  that  it  was  strict  truth,  for  he  was  the  Son  of 
God. 

Then  we  have  the  melancholy  history  of  Peter, — 
his  denial  of  his  Master  with  an  oath  to  a  maid,  who 
ought  not  to  have  frightened  him.  What  a  terrible 
apostasy  was  here !  and  yet  not  one  of  the  apostles 
was  sufficiently  faithful  and  devoted,  until  after  the  day 
of  Pentecost.  Peter  seems  to  have  made  up  for  this,  if 
one  may  so  speak,  by  his  subsequent  conduct.    And  it 


232  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

is  remarkable  that  Peter,  in  many  expressions  in  his 
Epistles,  and  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  shows  that 
his  mind  was  never  free  from  the  recollection  of  his 
sinful  denial.  For  instance,  he  says,  "  Ye  denied  the 
Holy  One  and  the  Just,"  —  as  if  the  recollection  of 
his  own  offence  was  that  of  the  very  greatest  that 
he  could  speak  of.  And  so,  m  his  own  Epistles,  he 
shows  clear  signs  indicating  the  constant  recollection 
of  his  sin.  Thus  we  see  that  sin  may  be  forgiven 
to  the  conscience,  and  yet  not  expunged  from  the 
memory.  Let  us  learn  from  his  fall  caution,  and 
from  his  subsequent  history  to  be  faithful,  steadfast, 
immovable,  always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the 
Lord. 


Note.  —  [1,2.]  The  account  of  the  events  preceding  the  Passion 
in  our  Gospel  takes  a  middle  rank  between  those  of  Matthew  and 
Luke.  It  contains  very  few  words  which  are  not  to  be  found  in  one 
or  other  of  them  ;  but  at  the  same  time  the  variations  from  both  are 
so  frequent  and  irregular,  as  in  my  opinion  wholly  to  preclude  the  idea 
that  Mark  had  ever  seen  either.  The  minute  analysis  of  any  passage 
in  the  three  will,  I  think,  convince  an  unprejudiced  examiner  of  this. 
Matt.  xxvi.  1-5,  Luke  xxii.  1,  2. 

[45.]  Tafipi  appears  to  have  been  the  usual  form  in  which  Judas 
addressed  our  Lord  (see  Matt.  xxvi.  25).  But  we  must  not  conclude 
from  this,  with  Bengel,  that  he  never  seems  to  have  called  him  Lord 
(see  Matt.  vii.  21,  22). 

[51.]  It  is  impossible  to  determine,  and  therefore  idle  to  inquire, 
who  this  was.  It  seems  to  have  been  some  attached  disciple  of  the 
Lord,  (probably  well  known  to  the  readers  of  Mark,)  who  had  gone 
to  rest  and  had  been  aroused  by  the  intelligence.  The  disciples  were 
not  laid  hold  of :  this  person  perhaps  was  throwing  some  obstacle  in 
the  way  of  the  removal  of  Jesus  ;  or  he  may  have  been  laid  hold  of 
merely  in  wantonness,  from  his  unusual  gait. — Alford. 


CHAPTER   XV. 

last    sufferings    of   jesus  —  pilate silence   of    jesus 

barabbas  preferred  to  the  son  of  god — ecclesiastical 
succession  —  pilate's  miserable  conduct  —  jesus  cruci- 
fied—  DARKNESS  —  HOUR  OF  CRUCIFIXION — THE  CRY  ON  THE 
CROSS. 

We  now  come  to  the  close  of  that  awful  tragedy, 
unequalled  in  the  history  of  the  world,  alike  in  its 
character,  its  virtue,  and  its  woe. 

We  read  that  the  elders,  and  the  scribes,  and  the 
whole  council,  actuated  by  the  intensest  feelings  of 
malignity  and  jealousy,  bound  Jesus,  and  took  him 
to  Filate,  in  order  that  he  might  be  punished. 
Pilate,  whose  character  evidences  that  he  was  the 
mere  tool  and  puppet  of  an  ecclesiastical  council, 
and  not  allowed  to  act  according  to  his  own  judg- 
ment, asked  him,  "  Art  thou  the  king  of  the  Jews?" 
—  they  say  that  you  are  ;  is  this  your  own  assump- 
tion and  pretension  ?  "  And  he  answering  said  unto 
him,  Thou  sayest  it,"  —  an  expression  equivalent  to 
"  I  am  —  I  am  the  King  of  the  Jews." 

"  And   the    chief   priests    accused   him    of  many 

things  :  but  he  answered  nothing."     Why  was  Jesus 

silent?      There  is  a  time  to  speak,  and  there  is  a 

time  to  be  silent.     When  a  charge  is  made  against 

20* 


234  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

one  which  one  has  repudiated  over  and  over  again, 
and  that  charge  has  no  competent  witnesses  to  sus- 
tain it,  no  evidence  of  its  veracity  nor  of  its  reality, 
then,  not  discussion,  not  reiterated  denial,  but  silence 
is  the  most  dignified,  the  most  suitable,  we  would 
say  the  most  dutiful.  What  was  the  use  of  denial 
repeated,  where  denial  was  so  treated  ?  What  was 
the  use  of  replying  to  charges  which  had  no  evidence 
to  sustain  them  ?  It  requires  in  us  grace  to  be  silent 
when  falsely  accused ;  and  there  is  often  more  grace 
seen  in  eloquent  silence  than  in  many  words. 
Where  reply  is  required,  reply  should  be  made :  but 
where  defence  can  be  of  no  value,  and  it  is  only 
reiterating  what  we  have  already  said,  there  silence 
is  alike  most  significant  and  most  becoming. 

It  was  the  custom,  we  read,  at  the  great  feast  of 
the  Passover,  which  was  now  being  celebrated,  to 
release  a  prisoner.  This  was  not  a  divine  institution, 
but,  as  the  Romans  had  the  civil  supremacy  of  Judea, 
in  order  to  keep  the  Jews  in  good  humor,  or  in  con- 
tentment, they  were  in  the  habit  of  indulging  them 
with  various  boons,  which  pleased  them,  and  cost  the 
Roman  government  nothing.  The  Romans,  there- 
fore, had  introduced  the  custom,  in  order  to  show 
respect  to  a  Jewish  festival  in  which  they  did  not 
believe,  of  releasing  a  prisoner  at  that  time.  TIktc 
were  many  prisoners,  charged  with  insurrection  and 
with  murder,  and  a  ringleader  of  the  name  of  Barab- 
bas,  the  worst  and  the  most  guilty  of  all.  And  when 
Pilate  asked,  "  Will  ye  that  I  release  unto  you  the 
king  of  the  Jews  ?  "  —  evidently  prepared  to  do  so, 
because  he  knew  that  the  priests  had  betrayed  him 


MASK    XV.  235 

for  envy  —  "  the  chief  priests  moved  the  people  "  — < 
urged  them  —  "that  he  should  rather  release  Barabbas 
unto  them."  What  a  spectacle  is  here !  The  civil 
power  was  willing  to  do  justly,  apparently  the  people 
were  very  much  disposed  to  be  guided  to  do  what 
was  right ;  but  the  priests  —  the  ecclesiastical  power 
—  thirsting,  under  the  stirrings  of  ecclesiastical  ambi- 
tion, for  supremacy  and  for  power,  put  it  into  the 
people  to  demand  Barabbas,  and  release  a  robber  and 
murderer  in  preference  to  the  holy,  the  spotless,  the 
innocent  Son  of  God !  And  who  were  these  chief 
priests  ?  They  had  a  true  succession,  mark  you  ;  the 
Jewish  priests  had  not  a  sham  succession,  but  a  true 
one.  There  was  not  a  priest  in  the  days  of  our  Lord 
who  could  not  trace  his  succession  with  perfect  pre- 
cision back  to  Aaron.  They  sat  in  the  chair  of 
Moses ;  and  yet  these  very  priests,  with  this  succes- 
sion, and  with  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  in  their 
hands,  crucified  the  Lord  of  glory.  There  was  no 
infallible  church  in  those  days,  and  the  ecclesiastical 
succession  was  not  infallible  then.  Let  those  who 
pretend  to  infallibility  now,  take  care,  lest  they  cru- 
cify afresh  the  Son  of  God,  and  put  him  to  an  open 
shame  ;  and  let  those  who  think  they  never  can  speak 
error,  because  they  assume  to  have  a  succession  from 
the  apostles,  take  care,  lest  they  teach  people  to 
prefer  a  Barabbas  to  Jesus,  —  a  robber  to  the  Son  of 
God ! 

Pilate,  unwilling  to  give  him  up,  asked,  "  What 
will  ye  then  that  I  shall  do  unto  him  whom  ye  call 
the  King  of  the  Jews  ?  And  they  cried  out,  Cruci  fy 
him.    Then  Pilate  "  —  evidently  himself  satisfied  that 


236  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

he  had  done  nothing  wrong  —  "  said  unto  them,  Why, 
what  evil  hath  he  done  ?  And  they  cried  out  the 
more  exceedingly,  Crucify  him.  And  so  Pilate,  will- 
ing to  content  the  people,  released  Barabbas  unto 
them,  and  delivered  Jesus,  when  he  had  scourged 
him,  to  be  crucified."  Miserable  governor !  why  did 
he  not  resign  a  sceptre,  the  dignities  and  the  duties 
of  which  he  could  not  fulfil  ?  Why  did  he  not  rather 
fling  place  and  power  to  the  winds,  than  dare  to  do 
what  his  conscience  told  him  was  wrong,  —  what  he 
knew  was  the  demand  of  mere  ecclesiastical  spite, — 
what  he  knew  was  the  betrayal  of  an  innocent  man  ? 
How  sorrowful  a  spectacle,  a  chief  ruler  becoming 
the  puppet  of  a  mob,  the  tool  of  ecclesiastics !  and  in 
order  to  escape  the  fury  of  the  one,  and  to  content 
the  rabid  passions  of  the  other,  he  committed  the 
awful  sin  of  giving  up  the  Son  of  God  to  be  cru- 
cified ! 

We  read  next  of  the  treatment  which  Jesus  re- 
ceived. "  They  clothed  him  with  purple,"  the  sym- 
bol of  majesty  and  royalty,  as  much  as  to  say,  You 
pretend  to  be  the  king  of  the  Jews,  we  will  treat  you, 
contemptuously,  as  such  —  "and  platted  a  crown  of 
thorns  "  —  a  mock  symbol  of  sovereignty  —  "  and 
put  it  about  his  head  "  —  to  torture  him,  and  to  be  to 
them  an  element  of  triumph.  "  And  they  smote  him 
on  the  head  with  a  reed,  and  did  spit  upon  him,  and 
bowing  their  knees  worshipped  him." 

And  all  this  while,  what  did  Jesus  do  ?  We  read 
nothing  of  an  expression  that  he  uttered,  of  a  remon- 
strance that  he  made.  "  He  was  led  as  a  lamb  to  the 
slaughter,  and  as  a  sheep  before  her  shearers  is  dumb, 


MARK     XV.  237 

so  he  opened  not  his  mouth."     "  Reviled,  he  reviled 
not  again."     Truly  this  was  the  Son  of  God. 

We  then  read  that  "  they  bring  him  unto  the  place 
Golgotha,"  so  called  because  it  was  a  place  used  for 
the  burial  of  criminals,  or,  as  some  think,  because  it 
was  a  mound,  or  hill,  shaped  very  much  like  the 
crown  of  the  human  head,  and  called  from  its  appear- 
ance, Golgotha,  the  place  of  a  skull.  "  And  they 
gave  him  to  drink  wine  mingled  with  myrrh "  — 
which  made  it  bitter,  and  which  was  generally  given 
to  criminals.  "  And  when  they  had  crucified  him, 
they  parted  his  garments,  casting  lots  upon  them, 
what  every  man  should  take.  And  the  superscription 
of  his  accusation  was  written  over  "  —  not  meant  to 
be  the  expression  of  the  truth,  but  which  was  pre- 
cisely so,  neither  more  or  less  — "  The  King  of  the 
Jews."  And  in  order  to  degrade  him,  and  show  in 
what  category  they  placed  him,  he  was  crucified  be- 
tween two  thieves.  And  thus,  while  they  were  vent- 
ing their  spite  against  him,  they  were  unquestionably 
fulfilling  the  ancient  prophecy  —  "  He  was  numbered 
with  the  transgressors." 

"We  read  then  of  the  conduct  of  those  that  were 
beside  the  cross  —  "  Thou  that  destroyest  the  temple, 
and  buildest  it  in  three  days,  save  thyself."  And  then 
they  said  — "  He  saved  others  ;  himself  he  cannot 
save."  They  meant  that  for  reproach  ;  it  was  literal 
and  exact  truth.  He  did  save  others.  The  blind, 
whose  eyes  he  opened ;  the  deaf,  whose  ears  he 
unstopped  ;  Lazarus,  once  dead  and  now  living ;  the 
raised  son  of  the  widow  of  Nain  ;  men  that  felt  their 
sins  forgiven ;  chiefcst  of  sinners,  who  found  themselves 


238  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

reinstated,  clustered  round  him,  and  acknowledged, 
"  He  saved  not  only  others,  he  saved  us."  But  the 
inference,  "  Himself  he  cannot  save,"  in  the  sense  in 
which  they  used  it,  was  wrong ;  in  its  right  sense 
was  perfectly  true :  he  could  not  save  himself,  but 
why?  Not  for  want  of  power,  because  he  was 
omnipotent ;  but  because  he  laid  down  his  life  for  his 
foes.  The  cords  that  bound  him  to  the  cross  were 
cords  of  love.  What  prevented  him  saving  himself 
was  because  it  required  the  sacrifice  of  himself  in 
order  that  he  might  save  others ;  it  was  because  he 
would  not  save  himself  that  he  could  not ;  that  they 
who  could  not  save  themselves  might  be  everlast- 
ingly saved  by  him. 

"  And  when  the  sixth  hour  was  come,  there  was 
darkness  over  the  whole  land."  I  must  state  now 
what  has  been  quoted  by  some  skeptics  as  a  sort  of 
contradiction.  Mark  says,  in  the  25th  verse  —  "  And 
it  was  the  third  hour,  and  they  crucified  him."  John 
says  — "  It  was  the  sixth  hour."  Now,  some  have 
supposed  that  there  is  a  mistake  here  in  the  original 
manuscript;  and  singular  enough,  this  very  text  — 
namely,  the  25th  verse  of  this  15th  chapter — occurs 
in  an  ancient  writer,  "  It  was  the  sixth  hour,"  the 
very  same  as  John.  I  will  explain  how  this  is : 
because,  while  the  Bible  is  God's  word,  and  its  main- 
tenance is  a  special  miracle,  yet  still,  by  the  careless- 
ness of  a  transcriber,  or  of  a  printer,  a  slight  error 
might  creep  in,  but  which  would  be  detected  by  sub- 
sequent and  minute  investigation. 

The  numbers  in  the  ancient  Greek  manuscripts 
are  given  by  letters.     The  gamma,  the  third  letter, 


MARK    XV.  239 

denotes  three  ;  alpha,  one ;  beta,  two;  gamma,  three : 
then  the  number  six  is  denoted  by  the  letter  sigma- 
tau,  very  slightly  differing  in  its  shape  from  the  letter 
gamma :  the  two  letters,  gamma,  that  means  three, 
and  sigma-tau,  that  means  six,  are  so  nearly  the  same 
in  shape,  that  the  slightest  twist  in  the  tail  of  the  one, 
will  make  it  exactly  the  same  as  the  other ;  and  it 
has  been  supposed,  that  owing  to  a  transcriber,  the 
supposed  deviation  has  taken  place.  I  have  stated 
this  in  candor  and  in  justice  ;  but  I  do  not  think  it  i3 
necessary  to  suppose  this.  When  John  mentions  the 
hour,  he  does  not  say  it  was  the  sixth  hour,  but  he 
says  about  the  sixth  hour.  Mark  specifies  absolutely 
that  it  was  the  third  hour.  The  third  hour  was  nine 
o'clock,  the  sixth  hour  was  twelve  o'clock,  the  ninth 
hour  was  three  o'clock.  Now,  it  is  plain  to  me  that 
Mark  describes  all  that  preceded  the  crucifixion  of 
Christ,  in  the  Praetorium.  He  says,  after  he  describes 
these  things,  in  the  25th  verse,  that  it  was  about  the 
third  hour  when  these  things  were  done ;  and  then, 
after  these  things,  they  crucified  him. 

Now,  John  says  it  was  the  sixth  hour ;  and  there- 
fore, the  way  to  reconcile  the  two  would  be,  that 
Mark  describes  the  commencement  of  the  treatment 
that  ended  in  the  crucifixion,  and  that  John  describes 
the  precise  moment  when  Jesus  was  nailed  to  the 
cross.  Thus,  the  two  slight  differences  show  this, 
that  the  evangelists  were  independent  witnesses,  — 
each  giving  his  own  independent  statement,  and  each 
stating  what  was  precisely,  and  can  be  demonstrated 
to  be  true.  And  what  shows  that  this  must  have 
been  the  idea  of  Mark  is  the  expression  in  the  33d 


240 


SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 


verse  —  "  And  when  the  sixth  hour  was  come,  there 
was  darkness  over  the  whole  land  until  the  ninth 
hour."  Now  John  also  states  this.  The  three  hours 
during  which  Jesus  hung  upon  the  cross  were  from 
the  sixth  hour,  or  twelve  o'clock,  till  the  ninth 
hour,  or  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  Now,  the 
evangelists  both  stating  that  the  supernatural  dark- 
ness was  then,  shows  that  John  meant,  by  saying  the 
sixth  hour,  the  precise  moment  when  Jesus  was  nailed 
to  the  cross  ;  and  that  Mark,  by  saying  the  third 
hour,  alluded  to  the  commencement  of  the  prepara- 
tions for  Jesus  being  led  away  and  nailed  to  the  cross. 
And  thus,  without  the  supposition  of  an  error  having 
crept  into  the  manuscript,  which  one  would  not  be 
disposed  to  admit,  if  possible,  the  two  statements  can 
be  reconciled  with  very  great  ease. 

The  darkness  that  was  from  the  sixth  to  the  ninth 
hour  is  admitted  by  heathen  writers,  as  well  as  by  the 
Christian  evangelists.  It  has  been  remarked  by  more 
than  one  heathen  writer,  that  about  that  very  time 
there  was  a  supernatural  darkness,  so  dense  that  the 
stars,  for  a  considerable  time,  were  seen  at  noonday. 
It  was  meet  that  the  sun  should  be  hid  when  the  Son 
of  God  underwent  so  awful  and  terrible  a  death  ;  it 
was  meet  concomitant  of  so  dreadful  a  tragedy,  that 
all  nature  should  seem  to  be  smitten  with  horror  at 
man's  heart  untouched,  and  man's  hands  perpetrating 
so  awful  and  unprecedented  a  crime. 

We  read  then  the  cry  of  Jesus  on  the  cross  ;  which 
is  in  language  that  is  not  Hebrew,  and  it  is  not,  I 
believe,  pure  Syriac  —  though  I  am  not  acquainted 
with  the  Syriac  —  but  a  mixture  of  Syriac  and  dial- 


MARK     XV.  241 

daic,  commonly  called  Syro-Chaldaic,  bearing  about 
the  same  relation  to  pure  Syriac  that  Scottish  phrase- 
ology would  bear  to  pure  English.  And  when  he 
called,  in  the  one  evangelist,  Eli,  Eli,  lama  sabach- 
thani?  which  means,  "  My  God,  my  God,  why  hast 
thou  forsaken  me  ?  "  or,  as  it  is  here,  "  Eloi,  Eloi,  lama 
sabachthani  ?  "  those  that  heard  him  supposed  that  he 
meant  the  proper  name  Elijah,  or,  as  it  should  be  pro- 
nounced, Eliyah,  for  Elijah  is  our  Anglicizing  of  the 
word  Eliyah,  —  they  supposed  that  he  called  upon 
Eliyah  or  Elias,  or  as  we  call  it,  Elijah  ;  and  then, 
knowing  that  Elijah  was  to  precede  the  coming  of 
the  Saviour,  they  thought  that,  in  his  helplessness,  he 
was  calling  upon  Elijah  to  deliver  him ;  and  there- 
fore they  said  —  "  Let  us  see  whether  Elias  will  come 
to  take  him  down."  "  And  one  ran  and  filled  a 
sponge  with  vinegar,  and  gave  him  to  drink" — that 
was  a  sour  wine,  called  here  vinegar,  which  was  used 
by  the  Roman  soldiers,  and  given  to  criminals. 
"  And  Jesus  cried  with  a  loud  voice  "  —  we  know 
what  the  words  are  that  he  uttered,  they  are  given  in 
the  19th  chapter  of  John  —  "  It  is  finished ; "  and 
when  he  had  uttered  these  words,  so  magnificent  in 
their  meaning,  "he  gave  up  the  ghost"  — that  is,  he 
died. 

The  women  that  followed  Jesus,  Mary  Magdalene, 
Mary  the  mother  of  Jame"s  the  Less  and  of  Joses,  and 
Salome,  remained  at  a  little  distance  during  the  cru- 
cifixion ;  and  after  his  death  we  read,  from  the  very 
last  verse,  that  "  Mary  Magdalene,  and  Mary  the 
mother  of  Joses,  beheld  where  he  was  laid."  Amid 
all  the  voices  lifted  up  against  Jesus  during  his  life- 
21 


242  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

time,  there  is  not  one  female  voice  expressing  itself  ii^ 
recrimination,  insult,  or  reproach.  While  men  for- 
sook the  unparalleled  sufferer,  women,  with  a  love 
that  did  not  falter  at  the  worst  of  times,  as  it  had 
never  wavered  in  the  best,  stood  near  the  cross  and 
sympathized,  if  they  could  not  succor. 

Joseph  of  Arimathea  had  hesitated  to  avow  him- 
self before,  because  he  was  ashamed  to  be  regarded 
as  the  disciple  of  the  Nazarene ;  but  a  great  crisis 
brings  forth  shrinking  courage,  where  otherwise  it 
would  be  hid.  He  had  hesitated  to  avow  himself 
before ;  he  was  one  that  was  secretly,  we  are  told,  a 
disciple,  for  fear  of  the  Jews ;  but  on  this  occasion  he 
felt  that  now  he  must  be  true  to  his  conscience,  and 
not  shrink ;  and  therefore  he  came  forward  boldly,  it 
is  said,  and  craved  the  body  of  Jesus. 


CHAPTER    XV.    39. 

CENTURION'S    TESTIMONY    IMPARTIAL  —  WHAT     IMPLIED     IN    IT  — 
EVANGELISTS    SKETCHED    FROM   A   LIVING    ORIGINAL. 

We  find  that  Matthew  gives  reasons,  —  not  all  the 
reasons,  but  some  of  the  most  striking  ones,  —  based 
upon  which  the  centurion  came  to  the  solemn  con- 
clusion to  which  he  gave  unhesitating  and  noble 
utterance,  "  Truly  this  was  the  Son  of  God."  Mat- 
thew says,  "  When  the  centurion,  and  they  that  were 
with  him,  watching  Jesus,  saw  the  earthquake,  and 
those  things  that  were  done"  —  indicating  plainly, 
that  there  were  other  supernatural  occurrences  which 
came  before  the  eyes  of  the  centurion,  and  made  him 
come  to  this  conclusion,  —  "  They  feared  greatly, 
saying,  Truly  this  was  the  Son  of  God."  We  have 
facts  additional  to  this  with  which  the  centurion  was 
connected,  which  constitute,  in  our  judgment,  irre- 
sistible evidence  that  Jesus  was,  what  he  assumed  to 
be,  the  Son  of  God.  But  the  centurion's  testimony 
was  a  very  valuable  one ;  he  had  no  ecclesiastical 
prejudices,  he  was  no  member  of  the  Sanhedrim,  he 
had  no  private  or  personal  spite ;  he  was,  in  this 
respect,  the  representative  of  human  nature,  and  he 
was  —  what  some  think,  very  foolishly  in  my  opinion, 
to  be  incompatible  with  the  Christian  character  —  a 


244  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

soldier  ;  and  yet  this  soldier  said, "  Truly  this  was  the 
Son  of  God."  I  have  found  the  most  honest,  open, 
and  candid  Christians  to  be  soldiers  and  sailors ;  and 
the  least  candid,  and  the  least  honest,  I  find,  from  the 
passage  of  the  chapter  we  have  this  evening  read,  to 
have  been  priests,  ecclesiastics,  and  members  of  the 
Sanhedrim.  This  centurion  was  swayed  by  no 
prejudices  whatever ;  he  had  witnessed  all  the  scenes, 
the  startling  scenes, that  had  occurred;  and  watching 
all,  with  an  unprejudiced  and  dispassionate  mind, 
as  far  as  human  nature  can  have  such,  he  gave  utter- 
ance to  a  sentiment  which  some  wise  men  would 
have  thought  very  rash,  others  very  inexpedient,  and 
others  too  outspoken ;  but  which  we  recognize  as 
noble,  beautiful,  and  just,  "  Truly  this  was  the  Son 
of  God."  And  never  does  nature  give  expression  to 
its  deepest  and  its  truest  sentiments,  except  when  it 
lays  aside  all  calculations  of  what  this  man  will  say, 
and  that  man  will  think,  and  states  its  inmost,  truest, 
and  deepest  convictions. 

Now,  it  may  be  asked,  What  was  implied  in  this 
epithet  which  the  centurion  gave  to  Jesus  —  "  Son  of 
God  ?  "  We  find  it  repeatedly  applied  to  Christ  in 
the  Gospels ;  the  voice  from  heaven  said,  "  This  is 
my  beloved  Son,"  —  the  evil  spirits  in  the  demoniac 
said,  "  Thou  Son  of  God,"  —  the  disciples  in  the 
storm  said,  "  Of  a  truth  thou  art  the  Son  of  God." 
And  we  read  in  John  that  this  expression,  "  Son  of 
God,"  was  equivalent  to  saying,  what  every  Jew 
believed  it  to  be,  that  he  was  God.  The  Jews  sought 
to  kill  him,  because  he  said  that  God  was  his  Father. 
It  is  not  in  the  original  Traripa  ainov,  but  Uiov  xavEpa,  his 


MARK    XV.  245 

own  peculiar  Father  —  the  Father  of  no  one  besides. 
He  made  himself  so,  said  the  Jews,  who  knew  the 
weight  of  their  own  expressions,  —  "  He  made  him- 
self equal  with  God."  Again,  in  John  xix.  7,  the  Jews 
said,  "  We  have  a  law,  and  by  our  law  he  ought  to 
die,  because  he  made  himself  the  Son  of  God ; "  that 
is,  if  Jesus  was  not  God,  he  was  guilty  of  blasphemy ; 
but  he  was  God ;  and  they,  in  their  cruelty  and  their 
wickedness  crucified  the  Lord  of  glory.  We  have  an 
allusion  to  this  same  fact  in  the  Gospel  according  to 
St.  Luke  :  "  Then  said  they  all,  Art  thou  then  the 
Son  of  God  ?  And  he  said  unto  them,  Ye  say  that 
I  am ; "  that  is,  I  am  what  you  have  called  me.  And 
they  said,  "  What  need  we  any  further  witness  ?  for 
we  ourselves  have  heard  of  his  own  mouth."  And 
this  centurion,  who  had  heard  the  accusations  brought 
against  him,  having  witnessed  the  startling  phe- 
nomena that  occurred  at  the  crucifixion,  said,  "  You 
may  call  it  blasphemy  in  your  synagogues,  you  may 
denounce  it  as  a  crime  in  your  sanhedrim,  you  may 
prefer  a  robber  if  you  like,  but  truly  this  was  the  Son 
of  God." 

Let  us,  then,  look  now  and  see  if  we,  too,  cannot 
discover  in  Jesus,  and  in  his  history,  and  in  his 
character,  sufficient  proof  that  he  was  so.  I  do  not 
doubt  that  you  all  agree  in  thinking  him  so ;  but  I 
wish  to  furnish  you  reasons  for  your  conclusions ; 
and  every  man  should  be  able  to  give  reasons  for  the 
faith  that  is  in  him.  Let  me,  therefore,  show  you 
that  beautiful  character  which  dawned  upon  a  world 
out  of  which  he  did  not  come,  and  from  which  that 
character  could  not  be  copied,  so  marvellous,  so  per- 
21* 


246  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

feet,  so  holy,  that  the  study  of  the  portrait  alone  is 
necessary  to  make  us  exclaim,  with  the  centurion, 
"  Truly  this  was  the  Son  of  God." 

Now,  I  think  —  and  I  appeal  to  your  own  ac- 
quaintance with  the  Scriptures  for  a  response  to  it 
—  that  the  portrait  given  of  our  Saviour  by  the 
sacred  penmen,  is  so  unlike  any  thing  that  ever  was, 
or  any  sketch  that  was  ever  given,  that  if  the 
Evangelists  invented  the  portrait  out  of  their  own 
imaginations,  they  must  have  been  the  greatest 
miracle-workers  that  ever  appeared  upon  the  world. 
How  can  you  suppose  that  four  men,  one  of  whom 
only  had  any  learning,  and  that,  probably,  not  very 
considerable,  living  in  the  least  cultivated  district  of 
Asia,  could  have  sketched  a  portrait  in  comparison 
with  which  the  portrait  of  Socrates  is  paltry,  misera- 
ble ?  Man  could  never  have  sketched  it ;  every 
touch  in  the  portrait  proves  to  me  that  an  Original 
sat  for  it,  and  that  they  sketched  from  a  living  and 
present  original.  Read  the  simple  history,  and  the 
evidence  that  it  is  true  is  irresistible.  No  human 
genius  could  have  minted  this  portrait,  no  mere 
man  could  have  struck  it  out  from  his  imagination. 
And  that  portrait  is  so  perfect,  that  though  it  has 
hung  up  in  the  mid  sky  for  eighteen  centuries,  and 
all  men  —  some  friends,  some  foes  —  some  critics, 
some  admirers,  some  haters  —  have  gazed  at  it,  criti- 
cized it,  yet  not  a  flaw  has  been  found,  not  a  blemish 
seen ;  but  the  irresistible  conclusion,  witnessed,  not 
by  a  Roman  centurion,  but  by  the  voices  of  eighteen 
hundred  years,  is,  "  Truly  this  was  the  Son  of  God." 

Notice  the  grounds  on  which  we  can  come  to  this 


MARK    XV.  247 

conclusion.  Let  me  touch  on  some  of  the  prom- 
inent features  of  that  remarkable  portrait.  Notice 
the  meekness  of  the  character  of  Jesus.  Meek  and 
lowly  he  assumed  to  be,  and  meek  and  lowly  he 
proved  himself  to  be.  Amidst  deeds  of  beneficence 
that  enriched  thousands,  he  remained  poor  in  him- 
self. With  a  power  that  could  command  the  angels 
of  the  skies,  and  all  the  resources  of  the  earth,  he 
yet  was  obliged  to  say  —  not  because  he  could  not 
make  it  otherwise,  but  because  suffering  was  con- 
sistent with  his  nature,  and  he  would  not  make  it 
otherwise  —  "  The  foxes  have  holes,  and  the  birds  of 
the  air  have  nests ;  but  the  Son  of  man  hath  not 
where  to  lay  his  head."  Mark,  at  the  Last  Supper, 
the  great  Teacher,  the  great  Example,  soon  to  be  the 
great  Sacrifice,  takes  a  towel,  and  washes  the  feet  of 
his  disciples,  to  indicate  what  they  should  do,  and  to 
be  a  precedent  for  their  humility.  If  a  mere  human 
genius,  assuming,  as  the  Evangelists  do,  that  Christ 
was  God  incarnate,  had  sketched  the  portrait  or  con- 
structed the  history,  he  would  have  left  out  such 
touches  as  these ;  he  would  never  have  thought  of 
putting  them  in ;  they  seemed  too  incompatible  with 
the  character  of  the  portrait  itself. 

Let  me  ask  you  to  study,  what  I  may  call  the  piety 
—  and  I  speak  of  Jesus  as  a  man,  never  forgetting 
that  he  was  God,  yet  never  hesitating  to  admit  that 
he  was  man ;  for  we  say  that  Jesus  was  man  just  as 
strictly  as  ever  a  Unitarian  can  say  it — man  in  every 
thing  except  sin;  but  then,  we  cannot  be  satisfied 
with  looking  on  a  profile  of  Jesus,  we  must  look 
upon  the  whole  face,  and  when  we  look  upon  the 


248  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

other  side  we  find  that  if  he  was  man  —  as  he  was, 
—  he  was  also  God,  and  assumed  to  be  so,  equal 
with  the  Father.  Well,  then,  see  Jesus,  as  a  man, 
in  the  midst  of  Palestine ;  mark  his  piety,  his 
worship,  and  his  religious  acts ;  no  asceticism,  no 
fanaticism,  no  strange  garb,  no  eccentric  habits  —  all 
was  intense  simplicity,  intense  severity.  If  he  spent 
the  whole  night  in  a  mountain  solitude  in  prayer,  it 
was,  with  the  sunrise,  to  go  forth  and  indulge  in 
deeds  of  active  beneficence.  He  came,  in  his  own 
language,  "eating  and  drinking,"  —  that  is,  just  like 
other  people :  he  had  his  friends  —  Lazarus,  and 
Martha,  and  Mary;  he  enjoyed  the  light  of  their 
fireside,  he  dwelt  under  their  roof,  he  reciprocated  all 
the  affections  of  a  pure  and  lofty  friendship ;  he 
dined  with  Simon  the  Leper,  he  sat  at  meat  in  the 
house  of  the  Pharisee,  he  mixed  in  friendly  discourse 
with  all,  and  showed  nothing  of  that  oddity,  that 
peculiarity  and  eccentricity  that  you  see  in  every 
impostor  that  ever  attempted  to  found  a  religion, 
and  palm  it  upon  mankind.  And  while  the  charac- 
ter, I  say,  could  never  have  been  sketched  by  unaided, 
uninspired  genius,  it  is  also  most  remarkable  in  the 
portrait  which  the  evangelists  give,  that  they  never 
describe  his  outer  man  —  his  height,  his  form,  his 
features,  his  appearance  as  a  whole.  You  have  not 
any  allusion  to  the  outward  person  of  Jesus,  that  can 
be  construed  as  a  picture  of  his  outward  appearance, 
in  all  the  evangelists.  How  remarkable  is  this! 
They  seemed  to  have  gazed  upon  the  inner  glory, 
and  to  have  almost  lost  sight  of  the  outer  man. 
And  this  seems  to  be  partly  as  a  rebuke  to  that 


MARK    XV.  249 

superstition  which  is  the  religion  of  crucifixes,  not 
the  religion  of  the  cross  —  the  religion  of  outer  paint- 
ings, not  the  religion  of  the  inner  man :  and  as  if 
they  would  tell  us  that  what  we  are  to  look  to  is  not 
what  Jesus  looked  like ;  but  what  Jesus  was,  what 
Jesus  taught,  what  Jesus  did.  Now,  this  alone  is 
most  striking  proof  that  the  Evangelists  were 
inspired,  and  that  Jesus  was  a  real  character. 

In  the  next  place,  let  me  notice  his  ceaseless  be- 
neficence. If  you  will  watch  the  miracles  of  Christ 
narrowly,  you  will  never  find  one  a  mere  freak  of 
power.  Never  did  Jesus  do  a  miracle  to  show  how 
mighty  he  was ;  but  every  miracle  was  the  pedestal 
of  a  truth,  and  the  vehicle  of  the  richest  beneficence 
—  his  miracles  were  beneficent  as  remarkably  as  they 
were  omnipotent.  He  himself  said  in  the  middle  of 
Isaiah,  "  The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  entered  me  to 
preach  glad  tidings  to  the  poor,  deliverance  to  the 
captive,  and  the  opening  of  the  prison  doors  unto 
them  that  were  bound."  The  blind  applied  to  him 
for  sight,  —  the  Pharisees  repulsed  them,  the  apostles 
murmured,  —  Jesus  healed  them.  On  another  occa- 
sion, a  woman,  who  was  a  sinner,  poured  precious 
perfume  on  his  head ;  the  apostles  complained,  and 
the  company  murmured,  but  Jesus  said,  "  She  hath 
done  a  good  work ;  go  in  peace,  thy  sins  be  forgiven 
thee." 

Study  him,  again,  at  the  grave  of  Lazarus  —  his 
tears,  his  sympathy,  his  compassion.  Watch  him 
when  pcor  mothers  brought  their  ragged  children  to 
him :  a  great  pretender,  affecting  a  great  mission, 
would  have  thought  it  beneath  his  dignity  to  touch 


250  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

these  children ;  but  what  did  our  Lord  do  ?  He 
took  the  crying  babes  in  his  arms,  and  amid  the 
remonstrances  and  objections  of  his  own  favorite 
disciples,  he  said,  in  those  touching,  tender,  and 
beautiful  words,  "  Suffer  little  children  to  come  unto 
me,  and  forbid  them  not ;  for  of  such  is  the  kingdom 
of  heaven."  Oh,  truly,  truly,  "  this  was  the  Son  of 
God." 

Let  me  notice,  again,  the  remarkable  wisdom  of 
Jesus  —  I  say,  mark  again,  in  his  character,  the  great 
wisdom  of  Jesus ;  that  appeared  in  all  that  he  said, 
in  all  that  he  did.  When  he  had  taught  them  his 
great  truths,  one  exclaimed,  astonished  at  his  great 
wisdom,  "  How  knoweth  this  man  letters,  seeing  he 
has  never  learned  ?  "  And  when  others  were  sent  to 
watch  him,  they  were  constrained  to  own,  in  spite  of 
the  masters  that  sent  them,  "  Never  man  spake  like 
this  man."  Just  sit  down  and  study  that  perfect 
sermon,  that  beautiful  composition  —  the  5th  chapter 
of  the  Gospel  of  St.  Matthew;  remember,  that  is 
written  by  a  tax-gatherer,  —  a  low,  coarse,  unedu- 
cated man,  —  remember  who  it  was  written  by,  and 
then  conclude  it  possible  that  he  invented  it!  Study 
it  again ;  what  pure,  far  reaching,  penetrating  moral- 
ity, what  acquaintance  with  the  human  heart  \ 
What  a  wonderful  disclosure  of  what  man  is,  where 
man's  danger  lies,  what  man  ought  to  be,  and  how 
man  may  become  so. 

Watch  him,  on  another  occasion,  seeing  them  who 
put  money  into  the  plate.  A  widow  casts  in  a  mite; 
and  He,  that  weighs  the  hills  in  scales,  and  the 
mountains  in  a  balance,  said  that  widow's  mite  was 


MARK    XV.  251 

worth  all  the  gold  that  the  rich  east  into  the 
treasury. 

Hear  him,  again,  speaking  of  the  outward  robe  as 
worthless,  and  describing  the  soul  as  being  the  only 
thing  that  is  precious,  the  only  thing  that  ought  to 
deserve  our  attention,  and  cause  us  anxiety. 

Study  next  the  nature  of  his  discourses.  Not  like 
some  of  our  Scottish  sermons,  full  of  impenetrable 
metaphysics,  that  leave  you  as  wise  when  the  sound 
has  ceased  as  before  it  began,  but  simply  giving 
great  truths  in  the  simplest  words  —  throwing  them 
out  just  as  the  earth  in  summer  throws  out  her 
flowers,  or  as  the  cloud  and  the  sky  throws  out  its 
lightning,  spontaneously,  naturally,  resplendent  in 
their  own  light,  and  convincing  by  their  own  exhibi- 
tion. You  see  in  his  teaching  a  type  that  ministers 
of  the  Gospel  would  do  well  to  copy.  Grand  words 
are  always  very  bad ;  the  best  words  are  the  shortest 
and  the  plainest ;  for  you  may  depend  upon  it,  that 
if  there  be  great  ideas,  the  less  drapery  there  is,  the 
more  clearly  and  distinctly  they  will  be  seen,  and 
felt,  and  understood.  His  wisdom,  then,  was  such 
as  alone  indicated  One  greater  than  man,  —  "  Never 
man  spake  as  this  man." 

But  turn  to  the  closing  scene  of  the  life  of  Jesus, 
and  see  there  evidence  that  will  make  you  conclude, 
as  did  the  centurion,  "  Truly  this  was  the  Son  of 
God."  What  a  mixture  of  majesty  and  suffering, 
of  patient  submission  and  yet  lofty  power!  His 
word  struck  down,  by  its  utterance,  the  band  that 
came  to  seize  him;  yet  he  was  led  as  a  lamb  to  the 
slaughter:    he   healed   by  a   touch   the   ear   of  the 


252  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

servant  that  Peter,  in  his  passion,  had  smitten  off; 
and  yet  he  would  not  save  himself:  he  bore 
reproaches,  and  revilings,  and  accusations,  and  was, 
what  it  requires  immense  genius  or  immense  grace 
to  be,  perfectly  silent.  Again,  notice  the  scenes  of 
his  crucifixion,  as  they  draw  near.  Study  the  con- 
duct of  Judas.  I  think  that  Judas  preaches  Christ 
the  Son  of  God  with  a  force  with  which  Peter  and 
Paul  never  did.  Just  watch  the  conduct  of  Judas : 
he  betrayed  Jesus  —  went  to  the  priests,  got  thirty 
pieces  of  silver,  and  for  that  sum  he  consented  to 
betray  him.  He  did  so ;  and  when  he  learned  the 
success  of  his  abominable  treachery,  he  took  the 
money,  flung  it  at  the  feet  of  the  scribes  and  the 
priests,  and  said,  "  I  have  betrayed  innocent  blood," 
and  went  forth  instantly  and  destroyed  himself. 
Now,  why  was  this  ?  The  traitor  had  nothing  to 
fear  —  the  Pharisees  were  his  friends,  the  scribes 
were  his  friends,  Pilate  was  his  friend,  and  we  know, 
in  the  history  of  the  past,  that  traitors  have  betrayed 
innocence  before  now,  and  slept  soundly  on  their 
pillows  notwithstanding.  Then,  why  did  Judas  go 
forth  and  destroy  himself?  I  believe  he  was  driven 
to  his  awful  doom,  because  he  knew,  as  the  intimate 
follower  of  Jesus,  that  he  had  betrayed,  not  man,  but 
betrayed  the  Son  of  God ;  and  that  awful  and 
withering  conviction  struck  down  all  the  heroism  of 
his  heart,  and  made  him  go  forth  and  destroy  him- 
self. 

Take,  again,  the  history  of  Peter's  conduct,  and 
you  will  find  the  same  lesson  come  out.  Peter  has 
denied  him  —  denied  his  blessed  Lord  and  Master, 


MARK     XV.  253 

when  he  should  have  confessed  him.  Now,  watch 
the  history ;  how  exquisitely  simple,  how  touchingly 
expressive!  It  is  said,  "Jesus  turned  and  looked 
upon  Peter,"  —  that  was  all;  he  did  not  say  a  word, 
he  did  not  blame,  he  did  not  remonstrate.  What  a 
look!  I  wonder  if  that  look  had  more  of  pity  than 
of  anger,  —  more  of  deep  compassion  for  the  poor 
fallen  man  than  indignation  at  the  crime  which  he 
had  committed.  It  was  a  look  of  compassion,  yet 
compassion  that  reminded  Peter  of  the  greatness  of 
his  sin ;  for  that  look  was  so  striking,  so  impressive, 
that  Peter  went  out  and  wept  bitterly. 

Now,  that  sketch  of  Peter  is  so  simple,  so  beauti- 
fully simple,  and  so  completely  in  accordance  with 
every  truth  of  the  Gospel,  that  no  human  genius  ever 
struck  it  out  —  it  is  too  real,  too  natural,  to  be  any 
thing  but  inspired;  and  the  incident  itself  too 
remarkable  to  be  any  thing  but  the  presence  of  a 
sinner  and  the  Saviour  of  sinners.  The  despair  of 
Judas,  rushing  out  to  commit  suicide,  and  the 
repentance  of  Peter,  returning  to  Jesus  again,  to 
seek  forgiveness,  both  testify,  each  in  its  way,  "  Truly 
this  was  the  Son  of  God." 

But  we  have  a  most  remarkable  testimony  which 
may  be  gathered  from  the  singular  conduct  of  Pilate ; 
just  watch  that  conduct,  and  you  will  see  that  Pilate 
had  some  great  conviction  that  Jesus  was  no  ordi- 
nary person.  First,  he  pronounced  the  prisoner  at 
the  bar  to  be  a  just  person,  —  that  was  the  phrase 
that  he  used :  if  he  had  been  conscious  that  Jesus 
had  done  wrong,  would  he  have  said  that  ?  And  if 
he  was  conscious  that  he  did  right  in  condemning 
22 


254  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

him,  would  he  have  gone  out  and  washed  his  hands 

—  a  common  ceremony  among  the  Jews  to  denote 
innocence  —  and  said,  "I  am  innocent  of  the  blood 
of  this  just  person,  see  ye  to  that."  The  vacillation 
of  Pilate  was  not  the  offspring  of  compassion, — 
there  is  no  evidence  that  it  was  compassion ;  but,  on 
the  contrary,  a  fear  lest  he  was  giving  up  to  be 
crucified  One  that  wa3  more  than  man.  Just  watch 
him  one  moment.  Pilate,  who  had  him  in  his  power, 
appeals  to  the  mob,  and  almost  imploring  them, 
entreating  them  to  suffer  him  to  let  him  go.  Again 
he  goes  to  Jesus,  reexamines  him,  cross-questions 
him,  implores  him  to  explain  himself,  and  let  him 
know  what  he  really  was ;  and  he  finds  nothing 
incompatible  with  his  previous  conviction,  that  Jesus 
had  done  no  wrong.  And  when  the  Jews  reminded 
Pilate  that  Jesus  had  called  himself  the  Son  of  God, 
we  read  that  Pilate  was  then  the  more  afraid.  Now, 
if  Pilate's  long  acquaintance  —  mind  you,  long 
acquaintance  —  with  the  works  of  Jesus,  with  his 
conduct,  with  his  sayings,  with  his  doings,  had  satis- 
fied him  that  Jesus  was  an  impostor,  why  this  washing 
his  hands  —  why  this  deciding  that  he  was  innocent, 
and  this  refusing  to  give  him  up,  this  fear  when 
he  was  told  that  he  assumed  to  be  the  Son  of  God 

—  this  language,  "  I  am  innocent  of  the  blood  of  this 
just  man,  see  ye  to  it  ?  "  If  he  believed  that  he  was 
an  impostor,  then  he  would  have  treated  him  imme- 
diately as  such ;  but  there  was  in  the  mind  of  Pilate 
a  strong  and  an  irrepressible  conviction  that  Jesus 
was  what  the  Jews  said  he  pretended  to  be,  namely, 
the  Son  of  God.     And  it  was  this  persuasion  in  the 


MARK    XV.  255 

case  of  Judas,  and  this  persuasion  in  the  bosom  of 
Pilate,  that  made  the  crimes  of  both  so  terrible  — 
that  they  flew  in  the  face  of  their  conscience,  and  in 
spite  of  their  most  solemn  convictions  consented  to 
the  crucifixion  of  the  Lord  of  glory.  And  the  Jews, 
that  shared  in  it,  what  a  crime  must  that  have  been 
— what  a  national  crime  must  that  have  been — that 
eighteen  centuries  have  not  expiated  ;  what  a  blow 
must  that  have  been,  the  reverberations  of  which  yet 
sound  along  the  ages  —  what  a  Person  must  He 
have  been,  whose  death  has  brought  down  continu- 
ous vengeance  and  retribution  upon  a  whole  race, 
up  to  the  present  hour ! 

Again,  if  we  look  at  the  words  which  Jesus 
uttered,  we  see  the  evidence  of  the  same  thing — 
evidence  that  must  have  struck  the  centurion  also. 
For  instance,  in  the  midst  of  the  crucifixion,  amid 
the  horrible  and  excruciating  agony  of  the  cross,  he 
said  to  a  thief  hanging  by  his  side,  "  To-day  shalt 
thou  be  with  me  in  Paradise."  He  was  himself  a 
sufferer,  and  yet,  such  was  his  sublime  promise. 
Again,  those  mysterious  words,  "  Eli,  Eli,  lama 
sabachthani  ? "  that  awful  wail  that  came  from 
the  bosom  of  the  Son  of  God,  indicated  a  sufferer 
who  surely  was  more  than  human.  That  prayer, 
breathed  amid  his  agonies  on  behalf  of  the  very 
hands  that  nailed  him  to  the  cross,  "  Father,  forgive 
them,  for  they  know  not  what  they  do ; "  and  those 
last  words  that  rung  the  death  knell  of  Judaism,  and 
which  were  the  first  notes  of  the  jubilee  of  Chris- 
tianity—  "It  is  finished,"  —  all  these  were  not  the 
words  of  a  good  man,  or  of  a  great  man,  but  were 


256  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

the  grounds  and  proofs  on  which  the  centurion,  with 
the  logic  of  the  heart,  as  well  as  the  logic  of  the 
understanding,  concluded,  "  Truly  this  was  the  Son 
of  God." 

And  notice,  as  a  summary,  the  whole  character  of 
Jesus.  He  rose  upon  the  age  with  a  purity,  a  good- 
ness, a  simplicity,  a  grandeur  that  never  were  bor- 
rowed from  the  age.  Jesus  was  not  the  creation  of 
the  age,  —  he  borrowed  nothing  that  he  was  from 
the  age  in  which  he  lived.  He  loved  men  that 
neither  loved  themselves  nor  loved  him ;  he  taught 
the  ignorant  as  man  never  taught  them ;  he  looked 
upon  sin  with  infinite  abhorrence,  but  always  on  the 
sinner  with  infinite  compassion.  If  you  will  study 
the  most  excellent  picture  in  heathen  times,  and 
bring  it  near  to  this,  it  is  not  comparison,  it  is  abso- 
lute contrast,  so  unlike  was  this  character  to  any 
other.  That  sufferer  in  Gethsemane  commenced  a 
reign  of  glory  that  seemed  to  close  when  he  died, 
but  that  now  covers  a  wider  realm  than  the  sun 
shines  upon.  That  mock  inscription  that  was  over 
his  head  proclaimed  a  lasting  dominion,  and  that 
wreath  of  thorns  about  his  head  was  more  glorious 
than  a  diadem,  to  which  every  nation  has  contrib- 
uted a  jewel.  He  was,  in  his  pangs  and  in  his 
travail,  giving  birth  to  a  glory  that  shall  never  die, 
until  sons  and  daughters,  redeemed  from  ruin,  shall 
be  made  kings  and  priests  unto  him  and  the  Father 
for  ever  and  ever. 

I  ask  you,  then,  to  ponder  on  this  mere  outline  of 
this  remarkable  biography,  and  ask  if  the  conclusion 
of  an  honest  student  can  be  any  thing  else  than  that 


MARK    XV.  257 

this  was  the  Son  of  God.  We  have  evidence  that 
the  centurion,  perhaps,  had  not ;  some  of  it,  perhaps, 
he  had,  only  it  is  not  recorded.  We  know  that  he 
rose  from  the  dead,  and  became,  in  that  resurrection, 
the  first-fruits  of  them  that  slept.  And  the  Apostle 
Paul  quotes  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  just  as  a 
ground  of  the  centurion's  credence,  when  he  says, 
"  Concerning  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  declared  to  be 
the  Son  of  God  with  power  by  his  resurrection  from 
the  dead."  We,  therefore,  know  by  that,  too,  that 
he  was  the  Son  of  God. 

He  is  alike  our  Saviour —  Son  of  God,  omnipo- 
tent to  save  —  and  Son  of  man,  ever  sympathizing 
with  us.  What  a  beautiful  and  comforting  thought 
is  this ! 

Let  me,  to  confirm  the  testimony  of  the  centurion 
by  the  testimony  of  an  infidel, — let  me  read  what 
Rousseau  said  of  Jesus. 

Rousseau  was  an  atheist,  or,  at  least,  an  infidel,  a 
hater  of  Christianity.  "  I  will  confess  to  you,"  says 
Rousseau,  "  that  the  majesty  of  the  Scriptures  strikes 
me  with  admiration,  as  the  purity  of  the  Gospel 
hath  its  influence  on  my  heart.  Peruse  the  works 
of  our  philosophers  with  all  their  pomp  of  diction ; 
how  mean,  how  contemptible  are  they,  compared 
with  the  Scriptures !  Is  it  possible  that  a  book,  at 
once  so  sublime  and  simple,  should  be  merely  the 
work  of  man  ?  Is  it  possible  that  the  sacred  per- 
sonage, whose  history  it  contains,  should  be  himself 
a  mere  man?  Do  we  find  that  he  assumed  the 
tone  of  an  enthusiast  or  ambitious  sectary  ?  What 
sweetness,  what  purity  in  his  manner!  What  an 
22* 


258  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

affecting  gracefulness  in  his  delivery!  What  sub- 
limity in  his  maxims!  What  profound  wisdom  in 
his  discourses!  What  presence  of  mind,  what  sub- 
tilty,  what  truth  in  his  replies!  How  great  the 
command  over  his  passions!  Where  is  the  man, 
where  the  philosopher,  who  could  so  live  and  so  die, 
without  weakness  and  without  ostentation  ?  When 
Plato  describes  his  imaginary  good  man,  loaded 
with  all  the  punishments  of  guilt,  yet  meriting  the 
highest  rewards  of  virtue,  he  describes  exactly  the 
character  of  Jesus  Christ:  the  resemblance  was  so 
striking,  that  all  the  Fathers  perceived  it.  What 
prepossession,  what  blindness,  must  it  be,  to  com- 
pare the  son  of  Sophroniscus  to  the  Son  of  Mary ! 
What  an  infinite  disproportion  there  is  between 
them!  Socrates,  dying  without  pain  or  ignominy, 
easily  supported  his  character  to  the  last ;  and  if  his 
death,  however  easy,  had  not  crowned  his  life,  it 
might  have  been  doubted  whether  Socrates,  with 
all  his  wisdom,  was  any  thing  more  than  a  mere 
sophist.  He  invented,  it  is  said,  the  theory  of 
morals.  Others,  however,  had  before  put  them  in 
practice;  he  had  only  to  say,  therefore,  what  they 
had  done,  and  to  reduce  their  examples  to  precepts. 
Aristides  had  been  just,  before  Socrates  defined  jus- 
tice ;  Leonidas  had  given  up  his  life  for  his  country, 
before  Socrates  declared  patriotism  to  be  a  duty; 
the  Spartans  were  a  sober  people  before  Socrates 
recommended  sobriety ;  before  he  had  even  defined 
virtue,  Greece  abounded  in  virtuous  men.  But 
where  could  Jesus  learn,  among  his  cotemporaries, 
that  pure  and  sublime  morality,  of  which  he  only 


MARK     XV.  259 

hath  given  us  both  precept  and  example?  The 
greatest  wisdom  was  made  known  amongst  the 
most  bigoted  fanaticism,  and  the  simplicity  of  the 
most  heroic  virtues  did  honor  to  the  vilest  people  on 
earth.  The  death  of  Socrates  peaceably  philoso- 
phizing with  his  friends,  appears  the  most  agreeable 
that  could  be  wished  for ;  that  of  Jesus,  expiring  in 
the  midst  of  agonizing  pains,  abused,  insulted,  and 
accused  by  a  whole  nation,  is  the  most  horrible  that 
could  be  feared.  Socrates  in  receiving  the  cup  of 
poison,  blessed  indeed  the  weeping  executioner  who 
administered  it ;  but  Jesus,  in  the  midst  of  excruciat- 
ing tortures,  prayed  for  his  merciless  tormentors." 
And  hear  his  last  words ;  "  Yes,"  says  this  infidel, 
"if  the  life  and  death  of  Socrates  were  those  of 
a  sage,  the  life  and  death  of  Jesus  are  those  of  a 
God." 

The  centurion  said,  "  Truly  this  was  the  Son  of 
God."  Rousseau,  in  his  better  moments,  uttered  the 
same  sublime  truth. 

Believing  now  that  he  is  the  Son  of  God,  how 
shall  we  rejoice,  when,  in  that  better  land,  we  shall 
see  him  as  he  is,  and  love  him  as  we  ought ;  where 
his  presence  is  the  light  of  the  New  Jerusalem,  and 
where  they  sing  perpetually,  "  Now  unto  Him  that 
loved  us,  and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  his  own 
blood,  be  glory  and  praise  for  ever  and  ever." 

When  we  see  him  as  he  is,  and  love  him  as  we 
ought,  we  shall  then  feel  and  say,  with  an  emphasis 
with  which  we  never  felt  or  said  it  before,  "  Truly 
this  was  the  Son  of  God." 


260 


SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 


Note.  — [39.]  There  was  something  in  the  manner  of  this  last  cry 
so  unusual  and  superhuman,  that  the  centurion  (see  on  Matthew)  was 
convinced  that  he  must  have  been  that  person  whom  he  was  accused 
as  having  declared  himself  to  be.  —  Alford. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS — THE  STONE  AT  THE  SEPULCHRE  — 
THE  SCENE  WITHIN  —  MESSAGE  TO  PETER  —  MIRACLES. 

We  have  read  the  record  of  the  crucifixion  of  the 
Lord  of  Glory,  of  his  being  carried  to  his  burial- 
place,  a  sepulchre  hewn  out  of  a  rock,  with  a  stone 
of  gigantic  weight  and  proportions  rolled  against  it. 
In  this  chapter  we  read  of  his  resurrection  from  the 
dead,  his  ascension  into  glory,  his  sitting  at  the  right- 
hand  of  the  Father,  and  his  ever  living  to  plead  and 
to  intercede  for  us. 

We  are  told,  in  the  first  verse,  that  "when  the 
Sabbath  was  past,"  —  the  Jewish  Sabbath,  which 
was  on  the  Saturday,  (and  recollect,  it  began  prop- 
erly on  the  evening  of  Friday,  and  terminated  at  six 
o'clock  on  Saturday  evening,)  or  some  time  after  it, 
—  "  Mary  Magdalene,  and  Mary  the  mother  of  James, 
and  Salome,  had  bought  sweet  spices,  that  they 
might  come  and  anoint  him."  We  here  perceive 
what  little  hope  there  was  of  the  resurrection  of 
Christ  from  the  dead,  for  we  see  that  not  one  of  his 
disciples  even  expected  it.  If  they  had  had  any 
expectation  of  the  event,  they  would  have  seized 
upon  the  smallest  indication  of  it,  and  have  founded 


262  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

their  conclusion  upon  very  slight  grounds;  but  the 
difficulty  was  to  persuade  them  that  Christ  had  risen, 
and  they  needed  nothing  short  of  their  own  sense  of 
his  actual,  personal  presence,  to  convince  them  that 
he  whom  they  saw  crucified  and  laid  in  a  sepulchre 
hewn  from  the  rock,  had  now  risen  from  the  dead, 
had  become  the  first-fruits  of  them  that  slept.  They 
brought  the  spices  to  embalm  him  as  a  mark  and 
tribute  of  the  affection  and  esteem  that  they  bore  to 
him,  evidently  never  dreaming  that  the  sepulchre 
would  be  found  empty,  and  Christ  gone. 

We  read  that  "  they  came  unto  the  sepulchre  at 
the  rising  of  the  sun ; "  and  when  they  looked  at  the 
great  stone  that  was  rolled  against  the  sepulchre,  — 
and  you  may  guess  the  size  and  weight  of  that  stone 
from  the  fact  that  the  Pharisees  feared  that  his  body 
might  be  stolen,  and  that  the  idea,  or  the  statement, 
might  go  abroad  that  he  had  actually  risen ;  and  in 
case  of  this  gave  a  commission  to  those  that  had  the 
charge  of  the  sepulchre  to  make  it  secure  by  rolling 
a  stone  against  it,  and  doing  every  thing  to  prevent 
such  an  occurrence,  —  when,  therefore,  these  females, 
(the  last  at  the  cross,  and  the  first  at  the  tomb,)  with 
an  affection  that  was  not  quenched  by  death,  saw 
the  stone,  they  asked,  "  Who  shall  roll  us  away  the 
stone  from  the  door  of  the  sepulchre  ?  "  that  we  may 
go  in,  and  anoint  with  sweet  spices,  —  that  is,  with 
myrrh  and  other  fragrant  perfumes,  —  him  whose 
body  is  all  -that  is  left  us  upon  earth  (as  they  sup- 
posed). But  they  had  scarcely  spoken,  or  Tather 
they  had  scarcely  entertained  the  difficulty,  before  a 
power   more   than   human   rolled   the   stone   away, 


MARK    XVI.  263 

though  it  was  very  great.  And  seeing  it  rolled  away, 
they  entered  the  sepulchre,  —  that  is,  a  hole  in  the 
rock,  a  cavity  or  a  chamber  in  the  rock ;  and  they 
saw  one,  having  the  appearance  of  a  young  man  — 
an  angel  from  heaven,  as  we  are  told  in  a  parallel 
Gospel ;  and  when  they  saw  this,  instead  of  the  body 
of  their  Lord,  which  they  expected  to  find,  "they 
were  affrighted."  Now,  does  not  this  carry  its  cre- 
dentials upon  its  own  face  ?  How  natural ;  how 
precisely  what  you  would  have  expected  to  have 
been  their  conduct  in  such  circumstances,  and  with 
the  persuasion  that  they  had  that  Jesus  had  died 
never  again  to  rise  from  the  dead. 

And  when  they  were  affrighted,  this  ministering 
angel  said,  "  Be  not  affrighted  ; "  and  the  reason  why 
is,  "  Ye  seek  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  which  was  crucified  " 
(your  affection  is  appreciated)  :  "  he  is  risen ;  he  is 
not  here:  behold  the  place  where  they  laid  him." 
You  perceive,  from  this  passage,  that  the  body  of  our 
blessed  Lord  cannot  be  in  more  than  one  place  at  a 
time.  You  are  aware  that  it  has  been  argued  by 
some,  that  when  certain  words  are  pronounced  over 
an  altar,  the  bread  upon  it  is  turned  into  our  Lord's 
body,  and  that  on  such  altar  there  is  the  complete 
and  perfect  body  of  our  blessed  Lord.  But  you 
observe  how  the  angel  says,  "  He  is  not  here :  he  is 
risen;"  the  very  sentiment  implying  that  he  cannot 
be  here  and  elsewhere  at  one  and  the  same  moment. 
As  God  he  fills  the  universe  with  his  glory :  as  man 
he  is  restricted  to  a  place,  just  as  we  are.  But,  he 
says,  instead  of  seeking  the  living  among  the  dead, 
"Go  your  way,  tell  his  disciples"  —  that  is,  engage 


264  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

in  active  duty,  carry  the  glad  tidings  —  "  and  Peter," 
—  what  an  exquisitely  beautiful  touch  is  that !  You 
recollect  what  we  read  in  the  account  of  Peter's 
denial ;  of  Jesus  looking  upon  Peter,  and  of  Peter 
thinking  thereon,  and  going  out  and  weeping  bitterly. 
How  beautiful,  that  Jesus  should  send  the  first  glad 
tidings  of  his  resurrection  to  his  disciples,  and  that 
he  should  request  these  women  specially  to  single  out 
Peter,  —  because  his  heart  was  sorrowful  and  cast 
down  under  a  sense  of  his  sin,  —  and  to  carry  him 
the  consolation  which  such  tidings  would  give.  In 
the  history  of  these  poor  women  we  see  how  per- 
fectly true  that  statement  is,  "  He  came  to  save  sin- 
ners, of  whom,"  says  the  apostle,  "  I  am  the  chiefest." 
We  read,  that  these  women  "went  out  quickly,  and 
fled  from  the  sepulchre  ;  for  they  trembled  and  were 
amazed ; "  and  the  silence  of  deep  consternation  so 
completely  overwhelmed  them,  that  they  ventured 
not  to  say  any  thing  to  any  man. 

Now,  we  read  that  "when  Jesus  was  risen  early 
the  first  day  of  the  week,  he  appeared  first  to  Mary 
Magdalene,  out  of  whom  he  had  cast  seven  devils. 
And  she  went  and  told  them  that  had  been  with 
him,  as  they  mourned  and  wept.  And  they,  when 
they  had  heard  that  he  was  alive,  and  had  been  seen 
of  her,  believed  not."  You  will  observe,  that  notwith- 
standing these  women  said  so,  the  apostles  could  not 
believe  that  he  was  risen :  it  was  too  good  to  be  true  ; 
they  could  not  suppose  that  it  had  occurred.  "  After- 
ward he  appeared  unto  the  eleven  as  they  sat  at 
meat,  and  upbraided  them  with  their  unbelief  and 
hardness  of  heart,  because  they  believed  not  them 


MARK    XVI.  265 

which  had  seen  him  after  he  was  risen,"  —  thereby- 
teaching  us  that  competent  and  impartial  witnesses 
ought  to  be  believed,  and  that  a  fact  that  is  told  by 
competent  witnesses  wTe  ought  to  receive  as  such. 

He  then  said  unto  them, "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world, 
and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature.  He  that 
believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved ;  but  he  that 
believeth  not  shall  be  damned."  And  then,  "  These 
signs  shall  follow  them  that  believe."  Now,  this 
seems  at  first  a  difficulty,  as  we  know  that  these 
signs  do  not  follow  those  that  believe  now :  we  find 
as  an  historical  fact,  that  neither  ministers  nor  people 
can  now  do  these  miracles.  But  what  was  obviously 
meant  was,  that  these  signs  should  follow  the  first 
promulgators  of  the  Gospel,  till  Christianity  was 
clearly  vindicated,  by  unequivocal  proofs,  to  be  from 
God ;  and  having  done  the  great  work  for  which  they 
were  intended,  these  signs  and  miracles  should  cease 
and  be  withdrawn.  I  know  that  some  insist  that 
there  ou^ht  to  be  miracles  in  the  Church  now.  I 
answer,  if  miracles  ought  always  to  follow  true  Chris- 
tian faith,  then  the  inference  must  be,  that  there  are 
no  Christians  in  the  world.  On  the  other  hand,  if 
miracles  were  only  to  be  done  for  a  special  purpose, 
and  during  a  definite  season,  then  the  meaning  of 
them  is  intelligible  enough,  and  the  reason  of  the 
absence  of  miracles  now  is  plain  and  simple  enough. 
Besides,  a  ceaseless  miracle  would  be  a  ceaseless 
contradiction :  a  miracle  ceases  to  be  a  miracle  the 
instant  it  becomes  continuous.  The  miracle  now  is, 
that  the  grass  should  grow,  that  the  trees  should  bud, 
and  that  the  flowers  should  blossom  in  summer ;  but 
23 


26Q  scripture  readings: 

if  winter  were  to  be  the  season  for  flower,  and  fruit, 
and  corn,  and  summer  to  be  the  season  of  snow,  and 
frost,  and  hail,  then  the  continuance  of  this  would 
make  it  cease  to  be  a  miracle.  If  anybody  by  speak- 
ing a  word  could  cure  a  withered  hand,  unloose  the 
tongue  of  the  dumb,  unstop  the  ears  of  the  deaf,  or 
open  the  eyes  of  the  blind,  it  would  cease  to  be  a 
miracle ;  for  the  continuance  of  such  a  phenomenon 
would  make  it  cease  to  be  wonderful  at  all.  What 
makes  a  miracle  is  simply  its  rarity,  and  from  its  con- 
tradicting what  is  the  ordinary  course  of  events ;  and 
the  instant  that  it  comes  to  be  continuous,  that 
instant  it  takes  its  place  among  natural  and  ordinary 
occurrences.  Again,  the  fact  that  the  vine  grows, 
that  it  bears  blossom,  and  that  the  blossom  issues  in 
fruit,  and  that  the  fruit  is  turned  into  wine,  is  just  as 
great  a  miracle  as  for  water  to  be  turned  into  wine 
by  a  single  word,  only  we  are  accustomed  to  the  one, 
and  we  call  it,  therefore,  the  law  of  nature,  and  we 
are  not  accustomed  to  the  other,  and  we  call  it,  there- 
fore, a  miracle ;  but  if  words  could  turn  water 
always  into  wine,  then  that  would  come  to  be  a 
natural  phenomenon,  and  would  cease  to  be  a  mir- 
acle altogether;  and  the  dews,  the  rains,  the  soil, 
and  the  sap  running  up  the  stem,  and  developing 
themselves  into  blossom,  and  fruit,  and  that  into 
wine,  would  become  then  the  rare  or  miraculous 
thing.  A  ceaseless  miracle,  therefore,  is  no  miracle 
at  all ;  and  to  assume  that  there  shall  be  miracles 
always,  or  constant  contradictions  to  the  ordinary 
laws  of  nature,  would  be  to  suppose  what  would 
bring  all  things  into  confusion,  and  cease  to  subserve, 


MARK    XVI.  267 

because  ceasing  to  be  miraculous,  the  great  ends  for 
which  miracles  were  intended.  But  at  the  beginning 
of  a  new  dispensation  a  miracle  was  important.  But, 
you  say,  would  not  a  miracle  be  as  important  to  us  ? 
I  answer,  If  competent  men  tell  us  of  a  miracle,  just 
as  they  witnessed  it,  —  if  the  evidence  be  clear  that 
it  was  really  performed,  —  then  we  must,  by  a  law 
of  our  nature,  infer  that  the  miracle  was  done ;  and 
though  the  impression  was  not  so  vivid  as  attested  by 
a  witness  as  if  it  were  proved  by  ourselves,  yet  the 
fact  itself  is  just  as  clearly  established.  If,  then,  it 
can  be  proved  by  competent  witnesses  that  miracles 
could  be  performed,  and  were  wrought,  in  the  early 
age  of  Christianity,  we  have  all  the  evidence  that  is 
necessary  to  convince  us  that  holy  men  of  old  spake 
as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost. 

But  we  are  told  that  a  miracle  has  no  converting 
effect.  "  If  one  were  to  rise  from  the  dead,"  we  are 
told  that  a  man  who  had  neglected  the  means  of 
grace,  and  the  calls  of  the  Gospel,  would  not  be 
converted.  If  you  were  to  see  a  miracle  performed 
to-day,  by  an  angel  radiant  with  the  glory  of  heaven, 
in  order  to  convince  you  that  Christianity  is  true, 
that  impression  would  wear  off  by  the  lapse  of  time, 
it  would  cease  to  have  any  effect,  and  it  would  be, 
practically,  of  very  little  value  to  you.  But  if  we 
have  had  our  hearts  moved  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of 
God,  —  if  we  have  had  our  eyes  opened  to  see  the 
truths  of  the  Gospel,  —  if  we  have  felt  the  power  of 
those  truths  in  giving  peace  to  our  consciences  and 
purity  to  our  lives,  we  have  thus  in  our  own  regen- 
erated  hearts   effectual    proof   of   the    presence   and 


268  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

power  of  God,  and  this  of  itself  testifies  within  us 
that  Christianity  is  indeed  divine. 

Now  all  these  disciples,  we  are  told,  did  take  up 
serpents,  they  did  drink  deadly  things,  they  did  lay 
their  hands  upon  the  sick,  and  they  recovered.  We 
then  read  that  "they  went  forth,  and  preached 
everywhere,  the  Lord  working  with  them,  and"  — 
according  to  his  promise  — "  confirming  the  word 
with  signs  following."  What  a  marvellous  record 
have  we  read  during  the  last  sixteen  Sabbath  even- 
ings! What  a  wonderful  account  is  Christianity! 
What  a  glorious  truth,  that  God  became  man,  and 
died  upon  the  accursed  tree  for  our  transgressions ! 
Is  this  fact  any  thing  different  in  its  operation  upon 
our  minds  from  the  fact  that  Mahomet  once  was, 
that  Alexander  once  conquered  the  world,  that  Julius 
Ceesar  was  once  slain?  A  fact  is  believed  in  the 
ratio  in  which  it  influences  us ;  the  truths  of  the 
Gospel  are  believed  just  in  so  far  as  they  are  worked 
into  our  hearts,  incorporated  with  our  feelings,  and 
made  practical  in  our  daily  walk  and  conduct  in  the 
world.  Do  we  feel  thankful  to  God  for  his  unspeak- 
able gift  ?  Do  we  feel  thankful  to  him  for  the  glo- 
rious record  of  it  ?  Have  we  had  it  transmitted 
from  the  outer  page  to  the  inner  tablets  of  the  heart ; 
and  are  we  ourselves  living  epistles,  written,  not 
with  pen  and  ink,  but  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  seen 
and  read  of  all  men  ? 

May  God  make  this  Gospel  good  news  to  us, — 
the  wisdom  of  God  and  the  power  of  God  unto  sa_l- 
vation  to  us  all ! 


CHAPTER    XVT.  15,  etc. 


THE  GREAT  COMMISSION — THE  EXTENT  OF  THE  GOSPEL  —  EF- 
FECTS OF  —  BAPTISMS  —  CHRISTIANITY  A  UNIVERSAL  RELI- 
GION. 

One  part  of  this  chapter  is  entitled  to  special 
notice.  It  is  verse  15.  "  And  he  said  unto  them, 
Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  Gospel  to 
every  creature.  He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized 
shall  be  saved ;  but  he  that  believeth  not  shall  be 
damned." 

The  passage  parallel  to  that  which  we  have  read 
is  found  in  the  Gospel  according  to  St.  Matthew, 
where  Jesus  says  to  the  apostles,  "  All  power  is 
given  unto  me  in  heaven  and  in  earth.  Go  ye, 
therefore,  and  discipleize  all  nations,  baptizing  them 
in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of 
the  Holy  Ghost ;  teaching  them  to  observe  all  things 
whatsoever  I  have  commanded  you;  and  lo,  I  am 
with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world, 
amen." 

These  apostles  had  received  from  the  Lord  the 
richest  blessings.  They  had  been  great  receivers  of 
grace ;  they  were,  therefore,  to  be  munificent  givers. 
They  had  been  saved  themselves  freely  by  his  grace  ; 
he  asks  them  to  go  forth,  and  prove  themselves 
23* 


270  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

active  benefactors  to  all  the  rest  of  mankind.  No 
man  receives  a  blessing  to  be  absorbed  in  himself: 
God  sanctions  no  monopoly  in  religion.  All  yours 
you  have  as  stewards,  and  what  you  have  you  are 
commanded  largely  and  liberally  to  devote  to  the 
glory  of  God  and  to  the  good  of  all  over  whom  you 
have  any  influence.  No  man  liveth  unto  himself: 
every  man,  by  being  a  Christian,  becomes  neces- 
sarily and  everywhere  a  missionary.  Recognizing 
the  apostles,  then,  in  this  light,  Jesus  says,  "  Go  ye 
into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every 
creature."  It  must  have  been  very  painful  to  leave 
their  homes,  their  country,  and  their  kindred,  and  to 
go  forth  into  the  wide,  wide  world,  where  they  must 
experience  all  sorts  of  opposition,  and  expect  rest 
only  in  the  grave,  or  rather  in  the  presence  of  Him 
that  sent  them.  They  had,  in  those  days,  no  such 
facilities  as  we  have.  The  modern  missionary  has 
not  the  difficulties  in  his  way  that  these  ancient  ones 
had.  The  paddle-wheel  had  not  made  travelling 
easy,  as  it  is  now;  the  iron  rails,  stretching  like  a 
network  over  all  the  earth,  had  not  made  communi- 
cation so  rapid.  They  went  forth  upon  the  rough 
road  many  a  long  and  arduous  journey,  knowing 
only  that  bonds  and  miprisonment  awaited  them,  but 
caring  for  nothing,  except  that  they  should  be  free 
from  the  blood  of  all  men,  and  fulfil  the  mission  that 
was  intrusted  to  their  charge,: — "  Go  ye  into  all  the 
world." 

The  boundary  of  their  commission  was  very  large. 
All  the  world  was  the  diocese  of  the  apostles ;  every 
soul  hi  the  whole  earth  was  a  parishioner  of  these 


MARK    XVI.  271 

early  preachers.  Clime  and  country,  latitude  and 
longitude,  were  no  elements  which  they  could  regard. 
Wherever  there  was  an  ear  to  hear,  there  was  a 
claim  upon  their  beneficence,  and  a  call  to  discharge 
their  duties.  Hitherto  the  Jews  alone  enjoyed  the 
Gospel ;  now,  that  which  was  a  lamp  to  a  land  was 
to  be  hung  up  like  the  sun  in  the  sky, — the  light  to 
lighten  the  Gentiles,  and  the  glory  of  his  people 
Israel. 

But  when  they  went  into  all  the  world,  what 
were  they  to  do  ?  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and 
preach" — not  enjoyment,  not  ease,  not  sinecure,  but 
arduous,  persistent,  prayerful  toil.  Well  might  an 
apostle  say,  "  Who  is  sufficient  for  these  things  ? " 
What  is  meant  by  preaching  ?  Unfold  the  message 
intrusted  to  you;  explain  it  in  the  plainest  words, 
with  the  greatest  earnestness,  addressing  it  to  the 
greatest  number;  defend  it  from  aggression,  shield 
it  from  misapprehension,  speak  plainly,  simply,  and 
faithfully  wherever  there  is  an  opening  for  you. 
Preaching  has  a  power  that  reading  has  not.  The 
read  sermon  is  never  so  effective  as  the  heard  ser- 
mon ;  what  you  read  is  addressed  to  the  understand- 
ing—  what  you  hear  comes  home  to  the  heart,  the 
conscience,  and  the  feelings.  The  Bible  is  the 
granary,  —  preaching  is  the  wind  that  scatters  the 
seeds  from  the  granary,  and  sows  them  broadcast 
over  all  lands.  The  Bible  is  the  great  fountain, — 
sermons  are  the  streams  that  flow  from  that  foun- 
tain, and  water  the  dry  and  parched  desert,  in 
expectancy  of  that  promised  day  when  the  very 
wilderness  shall  rejoice,  and  the  very  solitary  places 


272  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

of  the  earth  shall  blossom  like  the  rose.  We  do  not 
condemn  preaching  the  Gospel  because  we  so  insist 
upon  circulating  the  Bible, — we  must  not  preach 
only,  without  the  Bible,  else  we  shall  preach  error, 

—  we  must  not  circulate  the  Bible  only,  without 
explaining  it,  else  men  will  misapprehend  it;  God's 
command  is  that  there  shall  be  the  preached  Gos- 
pel, and  the  written  Bible,  coordinate  —  the  one  the 
witness  to  the  other,  and  both  to  the  soul  witnesses 
of  the  mercy  and  the  loving-kindness  of  God. 

"  Go,"  he  says,  "  into  all  the  world,  and  preach"  — 
what  ?  —  "  the  Gospel."  What  is  meant  by  the  word 
gospel?  It  is  composed,  as  most  are  aware,  of  two 
Saxon  words,  god  spell — the  "good  news,"  "glad 
tidings."  What  is  meant  by  good  news?  What 
would  be  good  news  to  a  man  dying  of  hunger? 
Bread.  What  would  be  good  news  to  a  man  in 
sickness?  Restoration  to  health.  And  what  are 
good  news  to  us  ?  The  pardon  of  sin.  What  is 
the  great  weight  that  lies  upon  the  conscience  of  all 
humanity?  The  burden  of  sin.  What  is  it  that 
we  need  to  make  us  truly  happy  ?  Forgiveness. 
That  Gospel  would  be  no  good  tidings  to  me  that 
does  not  tell  me  how  the  lost  shall  be  found,  the 
dead  in  sin  quickened,  and  they  that  have  wandered 
far  from  God  —  exiles,  strangers,  and  pilgrims  — 
shall  obtain  reconciliation  to  his  favor,  and  an 
abundant  entrance  into  his  heavenly  kingdom.  The 
glad  tidings  here  are,  that  in  my  Father's  house 
there  is  preparing  for  me,  —  the  returning  prodigal, 

—  not  the  retributions  of  an  angry  judge,  but  the 
festivities  of  a  rejoicing  home.     The  glad  tidings  to 


MARK    XVI.  273 

me  are,  that  the  cherubim  that  fenced  me  off  from 
Paradise  are  now  transformed  into  ministering: 
angels,  to  minister  to  me,  and  to  all  the  heirs  of 
salvation;  and  that  God,  once  throned  on  Sinai, 
exercising  justice  and  judgment,  is  now,  in  Christ, 
reconciling  the  world  to  himself,  not  imputing  to 
them  their  trespasses.  The  Gospel,  in  fact,  is  just 
what  I  have  been  proving  on  successive  Sabbath 
mornings.  "  By  deeds  of  law  no  flesh  can  be  justi- 
fied in  the  sight  of  God" — there  is  the  impossibility 
of  your  own  restoration  by  any  thing  you  are,  or 
any  thing  you  can  do :  all  have  sinned,  and  are 
guilty  before  God,  —  there  is  the  universal  brand. 
But  the  righteousness  which  is  by  faith  of  Jesus 
Christ,  is  unto  all  and  upon  all  that  believe,  justified 
freely  by  his  grace  through  the  redemption  that  is 
in  Christ  Jesus, — there  is  the  good  news.  And 
there  is  no  difference ;  one  has  no  more  claim  than 
another,  —  all  have  sinned ;  all  that  believe  are 
renewed,  are  reinstated  in  their  lost  and  forfeited 
prerogatives,  not  by  any  sufferings  of  their  own,  or 
by  any  satisfaction  they  can  make,  but  wholly  and 
solely  by  this,  that  He  that  knew  no  sin  was  made 
sin  for  me,  that  I,  who  have  known  nothing  but  sin, 
might  be  made  the  righteousness  of  God  by  him. 
The  Gospel,  in  other  words,  is  comprehended  in  one 
single  expressive  and  beautiful  text,  "  God  so  loved 
the  world,  that  he  gave  his  only  begotten  Son,  that 
whosoever  belie veth  on  him  might  not  perish,  but 
have  eternal  life."  Not,  Christ  died  in  order  that 
God  might  love  us ;  but,  God  so  loved  us  that  he 
gave  Christ  to  die  for  us.     Jesus  died,  not  as  the 


274  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

creation  of  a  love  that  was  not,  but  as  the  conse- 
quence of  a  love  that  was :  and  the  atonement  is 
God's  grand  provision  by  which  and  through  which 
he  may  continue  holy,  just,  and  true,  and  yet  show 
himself  merciful  to  me,  blotting  out  all  my  sins,  and 
receiving  me,  in  his  boundless  mercy,  into  his  own 
presence  and  glory. 

The  Gospel  —  this  good  news  —  is  not  to  be 
preached  to  the  elect  only,  nor  is  it  to  be  preached 
to  the  reprobate,  —  if  such  there  be,  —  but  is  to  be 
preached  to  every  creature,  without  difference  or  dis- 
tinction on  our  part.  We  are  to  offer,  in  the  name 
of  Jesus,  the  greatest  mercy  to  the  greatest  sinner, 
without  money  and  without  price.  We  do  not 
know  who  the  elect  are :  no  eye  can  penetrate  the 
hidden  and  mysterious  record  that  is  above,  and 
read  in  its  pages,  inaccessible  to  human  eye,  the 
names  of  them  that  are  to  be  the  heirs  of  glory; 
but  though  we  cannot  read  God's  hidden  and  mys- 
terious record,  we  can  compare  what  we  are  with 
what  God  has  delineated  in  his  own  revealed  word, 
and  ascertain  our  election  from  eternity  by  our  holy, 
and  consistent,  and  beautiful  character  in  time.  If 
you  can  ascertain  that  you  have  chosen  God  to  be 
your  God,  depend  upon  it  he  has  chosen  you  to  be 
his  people;  if  you  love  him,  he  has  first  loved  you. 
All  good  in  the  heart  of  man  is  a  reflection  from 
the  heart  of  God ;  whatever  We  are  that  is  good,  is 
a  reflection  from  God.  We  are  not,  therefore,  to 
preach  the  Gospel  to  humanity  partially,  —  we  are 
to  preach  it  to  every  creature.  A  man  may  be  sunk 
in   the   depths    of  crime ;  he   may   be  lost  to  every 


MARK    XVI.  275 

sense  of  what  is  just  and  holy,  beneficent  and  good ; 
all  the  glory  and  all  the  gladness  of  humanity  may 
have  departed,  —  woman  may  be  a  wreck,  man  may 
have  become  a  fiend,  and  both  the  chiefest  and  the 
oldest  of  sinners ;  but  unto  every  creature,  without 
distinction,  the  good  news  are  to  be  carried,  "  Believe 
on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  thou  shalt  be  saved : " 
for  thee  Jesus  died,  and  in  his  blood  thou  mayest 
have  redemption  and  remission  of  sins. 

Such  is  the  commission  given  to  the  apostles, — 
to  go  forth  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature. 
And  he  that  preaches  most  faithfully,  most  affec- 
tionately, the  Gospel  in  all  its  freeness,  in  all  its 
mercy,  to  the  greatest  sinner  without  distinction, 
without  difference,  has  the  clearest  proofs  of  apos- 
tolical succession  ;  for  he  has  an  apostolical  spirit, — 
he  delivers  an  apostolical  message,  —  he  need  not 
doubt  that  he  has  an  apostolical  succession. 

"  He  that  believeth  shall  be  saved,  and  he  that 
believeth  not  shall  be  damned."  How  sad,  that 
there  should  be  this  distinction !  One  would  think, 
that  the  instant  such  a  message  was  made  known, 
every  heart  would  bound  and  rejoice  at  the  very 
hearing  of  it :  but  instead  of  this  we  read  that  some 
will  not  believe.  "  He  that  believeth"  —  here  is  dis- 
tinction— "shall  be  saved."  But  some  will  be  so 
absorbed  with  the  cares  of  this  world  that  they  will 
say,  "  I  have  bought  oxen,  and  I  go  to  prove  them ; " 
"  I  have  bought  a  field,  and  I  go  to  see  it;"  "  I  have 
married  a  wife,  and  I  cannot  come."  Others  are 
satisfied  with  the  interests  involved  in  the  present 
life,   and   determine  to  make   the   best  of  it ;  and 


276  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

when  the  minister  of  the  everlasting  Gospel  speaks 
to  these  the  glad  tidings,  they  will  say  in  amaze- 
ment, "  Doth  he  not  speak  parables  ? "  What  a 
proof  of  the  depth  to  which  man  has  fallen  is  this, 
that  when  the  physician  comes  to  heal  him,  he  can- 
not recognize  him !  What  a  proof  of  the  hardness 
of  man's  heart,  that  when  forgiveness  is  offered,  he 
will  not  be  at  the  trouble  to  accept  it!  I  do  not 
need  texts  to  enunciate  the  truth  that'  man's  heart  is 
"  deceitful  above  all  things,  and  desperately  wicked." 
The  fact  that  God  has  suffered,  that  the  Gospel  is 
proclaimed,  that  mercy  is  offered  to  every  creature, 
and  that  so  few  close  with  the  offers,  and  are  happy 
and  holy,  is  proof  enough  that  man's  heart  is  deceit- 
ful above  all  things,  and  desperately  wicked.  But 
whilst  there  are  some  who  will  not  believe,  others 
unquestionably  will  believe.  There  were  Simeons 
and  Annas  in  the  days  of  our  Lord,  waiting  for  the 
consolation  of  Israel ;  and  so  there  are  those  now, 
who,  weary  with  the  broken  cisterns  of  time,  bowed 
down  beneath  a  weight  of  sin  they  cannot  get  rid 
of,  satisfied  that  something  is  wrong,  but  knowing 
not  how  it  may  be  remedied, — these,  the  instant 
that  they  hear  the  glad  tidings,  "  He  that  believeth 
shall  be  saved,"  will  believe  and  live,  and  be  happy. 
One  rejoices  to  know  that  every  day  the  number  of 
these  is  increasing.  Quite  true,  error  overhangs  on 
the  one  side,  and  superstition  spreads  its  pall  upon 
the  other ;  but  never,  I  believe,  since  the  days  of  the 
apostles,  did  real  religion,  —  silently,  it  may  be,  biit 
surely,  —  exercise  so  wide  and  so  growing  an  empire. 
If  the  hosts  of  evil  are  becoming  concentrated  on 


MARK    XVI.  277 

the  one  side,  the  armies  of  the  living  God  are  rally- 
ing round  the  great  Captain  of  the  Faith  on  the 
other ;  and  when  the  last  struggle  comes,  truth  shall 
prevail,  and  Christ  shall  be  all  and  in  all. 

But  he  says  also,  "  He  that  believeth  and  is  bap- 
tized shall  be  saved."  Now  many  controversies 
have  been  waged  about  these  words,  but  on  these  I 
will  not  venture  to  embark ;  yet  I  would  once  more 
briefly  remind  you,  that  there  are  four  senses  applied 
to  the  word  baptism  in  the  Bible :  and  the  reason  of 
most  of  the  controversies  of  modern  times  about  that 
word  has  arisen,  I  believe,  from  the  confounding  the 
different  meanings  of  it.  In  an  ancient  creed,  drawn 
up  in  the  year  325,  called  the  Nicene  Creed,  are 
these  words,  —  "I  believe  in  one  baptism  for  the 
remission  of  sins."  I  believe  that  most  heartily; 
but  then,  I  do  not  believe  that  the  baptism  there  is 
baptism  with  water.  You  say,  What  evidence  have 
you  that  baptism  means  any  thing  else?  The 
instant  we  hear  the  word  baptism  we  assume  that  it 
means  sprinkling  with  water,  or  dipping  in  water,  or 
other  application  of  water  to  the  body ;  but  this  is 
not  its  exclusive  meaning  —  it  is  one  only  of  its 
meanings :  for  instance,  our  Lord  says,  "  Can  ye  be 
baptized  with  the  baptism  wherewith  I  shall  be  bap- 
tized ? "  Here  the  word  baptism  means  suffering. 
Can  you  endure  the  sufferings  that  I  shall  endure  ? 
In  another  passage  we  have  baptism  used  in  the 
sense  of  miracles,  —  "  Ye  shall  be  baptized  with  the 
Holy  Ghost  and  with  fire;"  and  the  effect  of  that 
baptism  was  that  they  went  forth  working  miracles, 
24 


278  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

—  healing  the  sick,  speaking  in  new  tongues,  and 
raising  the  dead. 

Another  sense  of  the  word  baptism  is  baptism  with 
water;  the  word  baptism  not  meaning  "water," 
or  "  fire,"  or  "  suffering,"  but  simply  meaning 
"  sprinkled,"  or  "  covered,"  or  "  immersed." 

We  have  baptism  also  used,  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  in  the  sense  of  regeneration  by  the  Holy 
Ghost :  — "  Know  ye  not,  that  so  many  of  us  as 
were  baptized  into  Jesus  Christ  were  baptized  into 
his  death?  Therefore  we  are  buried  with  him  by 
baptism  into  death :  that  like  as  Christ  was  raised 
up  from  the  dead  by  the  glory  of  the  Father,  even 
so  we  also  should  walk  in  newness  of  life.  For  if 
we  have  been  planted  together  in  the  likeness  of  his 
death,  we  shall  be  also  in  the  likeness  of  his  resur- 
rection :  knowing  this,  that  our  old  man  is  crucified 
with  him,"  —  that  is,  if  we  have  been  thus  baptized, 
— "  that  the  body  of  sin  might  be  destroyed,  that 
henceforth  we  should  not  serve  sin.  For  he  that  is 
dead  is  freed  from  sin.  Now  if  we  be  dead  with 
Christ,"  —  that  is,  if  we  be  baptized  into  his  death, 

—  "we  believe  that  we  shall  also  live  with  him." 
When,  therefore,  the  controversy  is  introduced,  ask 
the  party  that  disputes,  What  meaning  do  you 
attach  to  the  word  baptism  ?  If  you  say  baptism 
means  regeneration  of  heart,  then,  by  all  means,  bap- 
tism is  regeneration ;  but  if  you  assert  that  by  such 
baptism  you  mean  baptism  with  water,  then,  to 
assume  that  this  is  regeneration  of  heart,  is  to  fly  in 
the  face  of  obvious  facts,  for  thousands  who  are  bap- 
tized never  show  that  they  are  renewed  or  regener- 


MARK    XVI.  279 

ated  at  all.  And  if  regeneration  be  inseparable 
from  baptism  with  water,  there  is  no  proof  that  any 
one  of  the  twelve  apostles  was  ever  regenerated  at 
all,  for  there  is  no  record  that  any  apostle,  except 
Paul,  was  baptized  with  water;  and  if  regeneration 
be  inseparable  from  baptism,  the  thief  upon  the  cross 
was  not  regenerated  —  and  yet  that  thief  upon  the 
cross  was  saved.  And  if  baptism  with  water  be 
regeneration,  how  strange  is  the  language  of  the 
apostle,  "  I  thank  God  that  I  baptized  none  of  you," 
—  to  thank  God  that  he  did  not  regenerate  men, 
when  he  knew  that  baptism  with  water  was  regener- 
ation !  It  is  so  contradictory  and  so  absurd,  that 
one  cannot  accept  it  for  a  single  moment. 

Baptism  with  water,  therefore,  is  admission  to  an 
outward  church ;  baptism  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and 
with  fire,  is  power  to  work  miracles ;  baptism  with 
suffering  is  to  suffer,  or  to  endure  suffering;  and 
baptism  with  the  Spirit,  in  opposition  to  baptism 
with  water,  is  regeneration,  —  a  change  of  heart,  and 
a  fitness  for  eternal  glory.  At  the  same  time,  I  have 
not  the  least  hesitation  in  accepting  baptism  here  as 
baptism  with  water.  I  think,  by  connecting  this 
with  the  parallel  passage  in  the  Gospel  according  to 
St.  Matthew,  we  must  conclude  that  the  baptism 
here  referred  to  is  baptism  with  water.  The  other 
passage  is,  "  Teach  all  nations,"  —  or,  as  it  ought  to 
be  translated,  "discipleize  all  nations,"  —  "baptizing 
them  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son, 
and  of  the  Holy  Ghost."  It  is  here,  "He  that 
believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved."  Because 
we  deny  that  baptism  with  water  is  regeneration,  we 


280  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

do  not,  therefore,  trample  upon  baptism.  "We  can- 
not make  a  god  of  it,  and  fall  down  and  worship  it ; 
we  will  not  grind  it  to  powder,  and  trample  upon  it ; 
but  we  will  place  it  where  the  Lord  has  placed  it,  as 
the  outward  sign  of  our  inward  attachment  to  him, 
and  of  our  acceptance  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus. 
I  look  upon  baptism  as  equivalent  to  the  sentiment 
in  that  passage,  "  Whosoever  shall  be  ashamed  of  me 
and  of  my  words  in  this  sinful  generation,  of  him 
shall  the  Son  of  man  be  ashamed  when  he  cometh 
in  his  glory ; "  and  when  he  says  again,  that  we  are 
to  confess  him  before  man,  as  he  confesses  us  before 
the  Father  in  heaven.  Baptism,  therefore,  I  look 
upon  as  the  outward  stamp  and  mark  upon  our 
brows  that  we  are  the  followers  of  Christ,  and 
believers  in  the  Gospel.  It  is  confessing  outwardly 
—  in  the  midst  of  men  —  the  truth  that  we  have 
inwardly  received  in  our  hearts.  And  whether  that 
baptism  be  administered  in  riper  years,  when  the 
profession  is  consciously  undertaken,  or  administered 
in  infancy,  it  is  the  same  ;  because  the  acceptance 
in  adult  years  of  what  our  parents  did  for  us  in 
infancy,  is  for  all  practical  and  substantial  purposes, 
as  a  confession  of  Christ,  the  same  as  our  public  and 
personal  admission  by  an  outward  and  public  bap- 
tism in  the  midst  of  the  visible  church.  The  purpose 
of  baptism  is  fully  answered,  whether  it  be  received 
in  infancy,  or  submitted  to  in  riper  years,  when  we 
publicly  profess  before  men  the  great  truths  to  which 
we  were  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of 
the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

He,  then,  that  believes  with  his  heart  in  the  ever- 


MARK    XVI.  281 

lasting  Gospel,  and,  being  baptized,  thus  outwardly 
confesses  before  men  the  truths  he  has  impressed 
upon  his  heart,  our  blessed  Lord  says  shall  be  saved, 
—  saved  from  the  curse,  delivered  from  the  conse- 
quences of  sin,  justified  fully  in  the  sight  of  God 
•from  all  things  from  which  he  could  not  be  justified 
by  the  law  of  Moses,  —  not  amused,  not  pleased,  but 
saved  :  the  object  of  a  written  Bible,  the  end  of  a 
preached  Gospel,  is  the  salvation  of  the  soul;  and 
the  Bible  is  read  profitably,  and  the  Gospel  is 
preached  fruitfully,  in  the  ratio  in  which  it  promotes 
that  great  ultimate  and  glorious  result,  the  salvation 
of  souls,  and  the  glory  of  him  who  has  commis- 
sioned us  to  preach  it. 

This  salvation  is  not  simply  salvation  from  the  con- 
sequences of  sin,  as  many  people  think ;  but  it  is  the 
salvation,  also,  from  the  power,  the  pollution,  and 
the  presence  of  sin.  The  unconverted  man  does  not 
care,  if  he  can  only  be  saved  from  the  effects  of  sin ; 
but  the  truly  converted  man  feels  that  he  must  be 
saved  from  the  presence,  the  contact,  and  the  defile- 
ment of  sin.  The  unconverted  man,  like  Pharaoh, 
if  he  can  only  get  rid  of  the  judgment,  loves  to  con- 
tinue in  the  sin ;  but  the  truly  Christian  man,  like 
David,  will  pray,  not,  "  Take  away  the  judgment," 
but,  "  Take  away,  O  Lord,  all  mine  iniquity ;  hide 
thy  face  from  my  sins;  cleanse  thou  me,  and  I  shall 
be  clean."  Now,  Jesus,  as  our  priest,  expiates  our 
sins;  Jesus,  as  our  king,  extirpates  our  sins, —  by  his 
cross  he  takes  away  its  consequences,  by  his  sceptre 
he  takes  away  its  power.  Because  he  died  for  me, 
my  sins  shall  not  be  my  condemnation ;  because  he 
24* 


282 


SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 


lives  and  pleads  and  intercedes  for  me,  my  sins  shall 
not  have  dominion  over  me.  By  his  priestly  office 
he  procured  the  pardon  of  my  sins ;  by  his  kingly 
office  he  secures  the  sanctification  of  my  heart,  and 
the  removal  of  the  power  and  the  pollution  of  sin 
from  my  conscience.  He,  then,  that  believeth  and  is 
baptized  shall  thus  be  saved. 

Let  me  notice,  in  connection  with  this  subject, 
that  Christianity  is  designed  to  be  a  universal  religion, 
"  Go  into  all  the  world,"  —  the  limit  of  the  sphere 
of  our  operations;  —  "preach  the  Gospel  to  every 
creature,"  —  the  limit  of  our  commission.  And  this 
Gospel,  I  believe,  alone  is  fitted  to  be  a  universal 
religion.  It  has  often  occurred  to  me  as  being  one 
of  the  most  striking  proofs  of  the  reality  of  our 
religion,  that  it  is  fit  for  universality.  The  graceful 
mythology  of  Greece  —  graceful,  though  full  of 
superstition  and  of  folly  —  was  fitted  only  for  the 
banks  of  the  Ilyssus,  and  the  gardens  of  Athens  and 
of  Corinth ;  and  the  religion  of  Rome  was  fitted 
only  for  the  banks  of  the  Tiber,  and  for  a  people 
constituted  as  they  were :  Hindooism  is  impossible, 
except  upon  the  banks  of  the  Ganges ;  Mahometan- 
ism  loses  all  its  power  when  it  journeys  far  from 
Mecca,  and  it  seems  to  be  quite  impracticable  in  a 
cold  and  northern  latitude.  But  Christianity  has 
nothing  of  the  local  or  the  limited  in  its  nature ;  it 
applies,  not  to  man  northern,  nor  to  man  western,  to 
man  southern,  to  man  eastern,  but  to  man  universal. 
It  penetrates  all  the  circumstantials  of  nation,  of 
country,  of  climate,  of  color,  and  of  tongue,  and  speaks 
to  the  great  heart  of  humanity  the  words  of  everlast- 


MARK    XVI.  283 

ing  life  and  of  eternal  truth.  It  has  upon  its  brow, 
it  carries  in  its  form,  the  credentials  of  its  divine 
origin.  It  is  a  message  to  each  individual.  It  tells 
every  man  that  if  he  perish,  it  is  not  because  God  is 
unwilling  to  save  him,  but  because  he  loves  the 
darkness  rather  than  the  light,  his  deeds  being  evil. 

But  whilst  this  Word  is  thus  fitted  to  be  universal, 
let  us  notice,  in  the  next  place,  that  it  is  to  be  carried 
out  by  human  instrumentality.  Jesus  might,  if  he 
had  wished,  have  written  Christianity  on  the  firma- 
ment ;  he  might  have  made  the  winds  chant  it,  and 
the  waves  of  the  ocean  chime  it  every  day ;  he 
might  have  made  the  lightnings  paint  it ;  he  might 
have  made  all  sounds  Christian,  and  all  voices  minis- 
ters of  truth ;  but  he  has  not  done  so :  he  teaches 
man  by  means  of  man ;  and  therefore  Christianity 
requires  instruments  for  its  promotion,  preachers  for 
its  propagation.  It  tells  us  that  we  are  made  saints 
that  we  may  become  stewards,  —  that  the  unction 
of  the  truth  is  given  us  that  we  may  communicate  it 
to  others.  It  is  quite  a  mistake  to  suppose  that 
apostles  alone  were  commissioned  to  preach,  or  that 
ministers  alone  are  now  commissioned  to  preach, — 
the  obligation  rests  upon  every  man,  and  every  man 
is  bound  to  fulfil  it  personally  or  by  proxy.  Person- 
ally every  one  can  do  much,  and  by  proxy  they  can 
do  the  rest.  In  his  own  home  a  man  may  be  a 
missionary  of  the  everlasting  Gospel,  silently,  sweetly, 
truly,  everywhere  and  always  witnessing  to  its 
power.  But  in  distant  lands  he  must  act  by  proxy ; 
one  is  a  physician,  another  is  a  lawyer,  another  is  a 
tradesman,  another  is  a  member  of  parliament;  and 


284  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

they  cannot  leave  the  posts  that  are  assigned  them 
by  Providence,  and  take  upon  themselves  the  dis- 
charge of  the  duties  that  devolve  upon  them  as 
Christians.  But  for  this  purpose  Bible  Societies, 
and  Missionary  Societies,  and  other  means  of  spread- 
ing Christianity  at  home  and  abroad,  are  within  their 
reach,  and  they  can  contribute  towards  maintaining 
those  whom  God  has  raised  up  in  his  grace  to  speak 
and  proclaim  the  everlasting  Gospel.  I  believe  that 
in  the  present  day  there  are  means  for  spreading  the 
Gospel  such  as  never  existed  before.  Steamboats 
have  made  great  oceans  ferries,  and  great  continents 
near  neighbors,  and  the  most  distant  parts  of  the 
habitable  globe  within  a  short  journey.  And  for 
those  that  know  and  love  the  truth  now,  it  does  seem 
to  me,  that  if  ever  the  commission  was  obligatory,  — 
u  Preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature,"  —  it  is  in  this 
nineteenth  century.  If  ever  there  were  opportunities, 
there  are  now,  unprecedented  and  unparalleled  in 
their  extent,  calling,  with  ten  thousand  voices,  on  all 
that  know  the  truth,  to  seek  to  spread  and  propagate 
it  from  the  rising  of  the  sun  to  the  going  down  of 
the  same. 

We  have  no  doubt  at  all  of  ultimate  success.  I 
believe  that  the  time  is  extremely  short :  the  great 
day  of  the  world  is  approaching  its  twilight,  the  dark 
shadows  of  a  coming  night  are  gathering  round  every 
point  of  the  horizon  ;  all  things  are  becoming  in  their 
action  more  rapid,  all  forces-  more  powerful ;  as  if 
nature  had  a  presentiment  that  the  day  is  far  spent, 
and  that  the  night,  when  no  man  can  work,  is  now 
at  hand.     And  this  is  a  reason  why  we  should  work 


MARK    XVI.  285 

the  more :  because  the  paper  is  almost  covered,  we 
will  crowd  the  remainder  that  we  have  to  say  more 
closely  into  the  sheet;  because  the  candle  is  almost 
burnt  down,  we  will  make  the  more  use  of  the  little 
light  that  remains ;  because  the  time  is  so  short,  we 
will  employ  it  the  more  earnestly  for  the  accomplish- 
ment of  those  great  and  beneficent  results  which  will 
bear  the  light  and  the  inspection  of  a  judgment-day. 

Let  us,  also,  rejoice  in  the  blessed  thought  that, 
whether  by  us  or  without  us,  this  Gospel  shall  uni- 
versally prevail.  All  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall 
remember  the  Lord,  all  its  countries  shall  worship 
before  him.  The  Son  has  the  heathen  for  his  inheri- 
tance, and  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for  his 
possession.  "  From  the  rising  of  the  sun  to  the 
going  down  of  the  same,  my  name  shall  be  great 
among  the  Gentiles."  He  shall  reign  from  sea  to 
sea,  and  from  the  river  to  the  uttermost  ends  of  the 
earth.  At  the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee  shall  bow, 
and  every  tongue  shall  confess ;  one  song  shall 
employ  all  nations,  and  all  shall  cry,  "  Worthy  is  the 
Lamb,  for  he  was  slain  for  us."  Whether,  then,  by 
us,  or  without  us,  or  in  spite  of  us,  the  Gospel  shall 
prevail.  We  are  offered  the  honor  of  aiding  its 
spread  among  all  nations,  and  hastening  —  as  far  as 
human  instrumentality  can  hasten  it  —  that  blessed 
day  when  Christ  shall  be  worshipped  from  sea  to 
sea,  and  from  the  river  even  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

But  notice  here  that  part  of  the  text,  "  He  that 
bclieveth  not  shall  be  damned,"  —  shall  be,  in  other 
words,  lost.  This  does  not  mean  that  man  needs 
any  thing  to  destroy  him ;   it   is   not   that   we   are 


286  SCRIPTURE     READINGS. 

obliged  to  do  something  in  order  to  be  lost;  the 
rejection  of  the  message  is  the  preparation  for  this 
terrible  retribution.  Man  is  lost  by  nature,  —  leave 
him  alone,  and  he  sinks  into  the  depth  of  ruin,  just 
as  naturally  as  a  stone  falls  towards  the  centre  of  the 
earth.  Left  alone,  man  will  perish.  It  needs  not 
that  he  should  commit  some  great  crime  in  order  to 
be  condemned.  Reject  the  remedy,  and  the  patient 
must  die ;  refuse  the  Saviour,  and  the  soul  must 
perish.  Believe  not  the  Gospel,  the  prescription  for 
human  ruin,  and  that  ruin  is  not  created,  it  is  only 
sealed  and  made  more  sure.  The  Gospel  condemns 
none,  it  seeks  to  save  all.  If  any  perish,  they  perish 
of  themselves.  There  are  none  but  suicides  in  hell ; 
all  that  are  there  were  not  murdered,  but  were  self- 
slain.  They  are  there  because  they  would  not  go  to 
heaven,  —  they  were  lost  because  they  would  not  be 
saved.  They  not  only  broke  the  great  law,  but  they 
rejected  the  only  remedy ;  they  not  only  were  suffer- 
ing under  disease,  but  they  despised  and  repudiated 
the  only  Physician  that  could  heal  them.  And  if  it 
be  ruin  to  break  God's  holy  law,  is  it  not  a  ruin 
justly  provoked,  richly  deserved,  when  men  do  not 
regard  the  law,  despise  the  provision  of  the  cross, 
and  tell  God  —  silently,  it  may  be,  but  surely  —  that 
he  might  have  spared  the  scenes  of  Calvary,  that  he 
might  have  saved  himself  the  crucifixion,  that  Christ 
need  not  have  died ;  and  if  these  things  be  remedies 
provided  by  his  mercy,  they  can  do  without  them, — 
they  will  brave  the  consequences,  they  will  stand  at 
a  judgment-seat;  and  if  they  cannot  save  themselves 
by  their  own  efforts,  they  will  risk  the  terrible  issue 


MARK    XVI. 


287 


of  perishing,  by  rejecting  the  only  remedy  provided 
in  the  Gospel  ?  Hence,  the  last  sentence,  as  I  have 
often  said,  is,  "  Come,  ye  blessed,  inherit  the  kingdom 
prepared  for  you;"  but  it  is,  "  Depart,  ye  cursed,  into 
everlasting  fire,  prepared  "  —  not  for  you  —  "  prepared 
for  the  devil  and  his  angels : "  showing  that  the 
Gospel  is  a  provision  for  man's  salvation ;  and  that 
if  man  is  lost,  he  precipitates  himself,  by  his  own 
deliberate  rejection  of  salvation,  into  a  place  of  exile, 
of  sorrow,  of  agony  and  woe,  that  was  never  made 
for  him,  and  never  meant  for  him,  —  designed  to  be 
a  prison  for  fallen  spirits,  —  but  which  man  has 
necessitated  as  his  only  abode,  by  his  being  disquali- 
fied, by  his  rejection  of  the  Gospel,  for  that  blessed 
and  holy  rest  that  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God. 

My  dear  friends,  you  have  heard  this  night  the 
simple  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.  Do  you  believe  ?  Do 
you  accept  Christ's  righteousness  as  your  only  title 
—  his  precious  blood  as  your  only  expiation  —  his 
Word  as  the  only  lamp  for  your  feet  —  his  Holy 
Spirit  as  your  Sanctifier  and  your  Comforter  —  and 
his  glory  as  the  joyful  expectancy  of  your  believing 
hearts  ? 

May  his  Holy  Spirit  help  you  so  to  do,  for  Christ's 
sake.     Amen. 


Note.  —  [15.]  Not  to  men  only,  although  men  only  can  hear  the 
preaching  of  the  Gospel;  all  creation  is  redeemed  by  Christ.  (See- 
1  Cor.  xv.  23  ;  Eom.  viii.  19,  23.)  "  Hominibus  primario,"  (ver.  16,) 
"  rcliquis  creaturis  secundario.  Sicut  malcdictio,  ita  benedictio  patet 
creatur*  per  F  ilium,  Fundamentum  redemptionis  et  regni."    (Bengel 


288  SCRIPTURE    READINGS. 

inloc.)  Kt'kjcc  appears  never  in  the  New  Testament  to  be  used  of 
mankind  alone.  Bengel's  "  reliqnis  creaturis  secundario "  may  be 
illustrated  in  the  blessings  which  Christianity  confers  on  the  inferior 
creatures,  and  the  face  of  the  earth,  by  bringing  civilization  in  its 
wake.  By  these  -words  the  missionary  office  is  bound  upon  the 
Church  through  all  ages,  till  every  part  of  the  earth  shall  have  been 
evangelized.  — Alford. 


$ 


Date  Due 

1599LJ.   (I  J 

10-02-A7  3218B     MC    lij 


™illll»PlM5fi?!,??'ca'  '""»1  Libraries 


1    1012  01340  4928 


